Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — It almost didn't happen. First off Southern Nazarene was facing an impossible task of winning six of its last eight to even qualify for the NCCAA Central Region Tournament and after Colorado Christian took a six-point lead late the in second half, it looked like national tournament hopes, might be going out the door.
 
Once again though, SNU found a way to secure the win and went on an 11-2 run over the last four minutes of the game to pick up the 56-53 win and advanced to the NCCAA National Tournament.
 
NCCAA Central Region Tournament MVP CJ Smith finished with a game-high 19 and couldn't have come up with a bigger bucket at a bigger time. With the game tied at 53, Smith knifed his way through the lane and buried a lay up off the glass while drawing the foul with just one tick left on the clock. After he made the free throw, CCU tried to inbound the ball, but bounced it off the ceiling of the Eagles' Nest at Oklahoma Christian.
 
Smith went 5-for-9 from the field and 9-for-11 from the line. He also added eight rebounds and three assists. Quan Conner had 13 points two rebounds and two assists. Francisco Hukill added 10 points and five rebounds off of the bench.
 
SNU held Colorado Christian to just 30.4 percent shooting from the floor and just 3-for-19 from 3-point range. The Storm also held Kyle Weaver, who scored 47 points Friday night, to just nine points as he hit just two shots the entire night.
 
Southern Nazarene led by as much as eight early in the second half as neither team held a double-digit lead. The Storm led for nearly the entire second half, until the Cougars went on a 14-1 run to lead 51-45 with 4:10 to play. That's went SNU began chipping its way back into the game with free throws and got a late steal by LB Willis to gain control at 53.2 with two minutes left. CCU tied it with 58 seconds left with a free throw and that set the stage for Smith's final bucket.
 
The Storm now set for the NCCAA National Tournament, March 19-22, in Winona Lake, Ind.