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Utah Valley misses wide-open dunk to lose the WAC championship against California Baptist originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
California Baptist is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
Dominique Daniels Jr. delivered in the closing moments as the second-seeded Lancers rallied to beat top-seeded Utah Valley 63-61 in the WAC championship game Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Daniels scored 23 points and buried two deep 3-pointers in the final minute to complete the comeback. His 26-foot pull-up with the shot clock winding down gave California Baptist the lead with 14.6 seconds remaining.
Utah Valley had one last chance to tie the game, but Isaac Davis missed an alley-oop dunk with three seconds left, sealing the victory for the Lancers and sending their bench into celebration.
California Baptist (25-8) earned its first NCAA Tournament berth after completing the transition from Division II in 2018 and becoming postseason eligible in the 2022-23 season. The Lancers have now won six straight games, setting a program record for victories in the Division I era.
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Utah Valley (25-8), which had won back-to-back WAC regular-season titles, saw its seven-game winning streak snapped. Jackson Holcombe led the Wolverines with 18 points, while Davis added 12. Trevan Leonhardt contributed 10 rebounds and eight assists.
“This group’s belief in each other means everything,” California Baptist coach Rick Croy said. “They represent CBU the right way.”
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