The University of Redlands men's basketball team punched its ticket to the NCAA Division III Championships for the second time in three years by defeating Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in Saturday's final of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Postseason Tournament. The Bulldogs staved off a late comeback effort by the Stags to earn their third triumph over CMS this season, with tonight's result coming in a 73-64 decision.

After Redlands' junior guard/forward Eric Radford (Federal Way, WA) opened the game with back-to-back threes, the familiar rivals battled through a tight first half, with neither squad pulling away. Redlands finally garnered its largest advantage of the stanza at the intermission, as junior forward Alex Rudd (St. Louis, MO) nailed a long-range effort before senior guard Tristan Kirk (Redlands, CA) hit a fade-away jumper to make it 33-27.

The Bulldogs knocked down 52% of its shots in the first 20 minutes, creating a little breathing room over the Stags.

The momentum stayed with the Maroon and Gray, as Redlands came out of the locker room with a renewed sense of urgency, firing off 10-1 run to take a 43-28 lead with 16:29 left on the clock. Kirk and senior guard Brian Kuklok (Poway, CA) joined forces during this spurt, accounting for eight of the Bulldogs' points.

Redlands maintained its double-digit lead over the next three minutes until CMS' Jack Grodahl drained a three-pointer to cut the Stags' deficit to nine.

But the Bulldogs responded once again, uncorking another impressive run while out-scoring the opponents by a 10-3 margin. Redlands' well-balanced attack shined through, with no one player scoring more than three points. Kirk's long-range shot capped off the run with 6:36 to go in the half.

However, the Stags continued to claw at the Maroon and Gray's lead while forcing tough shots and turnovers on the Bulldogs. By the 3:13-mark, CMS trailed by just four at 57-61 after Cody Mivshek and Grodahl combined for three buckets from downtown.

On the Maroon and Gray's ensuing possession, Kirk drove the lane and suffered a hard foul, forcing him to exit the game. Senior forward Steven Williams (Ventura, CA) stepped up to the charity stripe and knocked down both free-throws in Kirk's place, igniting a blast of cheers from the Bulldog faithful.

Nonetheless, CMS' Kevin Sullivan added another three-pointer to the Stags' total of 11 on the night, making it a three-point game with 2:27 remaining.

After Head Coach Jim Ducey talked it over in a timeout, the Bulldogs looked to senior forward Josiah Brensdal (Kent, WA) to drive the basket for a critical and-one play, creating a six-point advantage with 1:58 to play.

From here, Redlands took care of the ball, while CMS was forced to foul, sending junior guard Matt Calhoun (Clackamas, OR) to the line on four occasions. He steadily converted all four chances.

All of the Stags' final efforts to score were foiled as the Bulldogs continued to convert opportunities at the charity stripe, resulting in the 73-64 victory for Redlands.

Overall, the Maroon and Gray shot 51% from the field, including a 42.9% effort from downtown, compared to CMS' 38.9% overall shooting and 37.9% performance from beyond the arc. However, the Stags managed to sink 11 three-pointers, while the Bulldogs only knocked down six of them.

Kirk led the Bulldogs' well-rounded offense with 15 points, including a pair of three-pointers. Radford added 12 points, while Kuklok and Calhoun chipped in 10 apiece. Brensdal led the rebounding effort with seven boards to go along with eight points and four assists.

CMS' Mivshek led all scorers with 20 points, which included three shots from downtown. Grodahl came off the bench for 15 points, while starter Remy Pinson added 11.

Redlands (22-5) earns the SCIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and now awaits the announcement of pairings and sites, which will be available on Monday morning.

Watch the Bulldogs cut down the net after the big win.