CLU Sports

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – The California Lutheran University men’s basketball team defended its home court in winning the 2007-2008 Thrivent Financial for Lutherans (TFFL) title by defeating Gettysburg (PA) College, 59-49. The Kingsmen did not allow a Bullets field goal for the opening 8:18 of the second half en route to the title.

The battle of the one-loss teams went in favor of the Bullets after two Dan Capkin’s 12 points extended the Gettysburg lead to seven with just under nine minutes left in the opening stanza. Following a CLU timeout, the Kingsmen deficit evaporated in just over four minutes and Cal Lutheran would not trail during the final 22 minutes.

After pulling out to a five point cushion at the half, the Kingsmen continued its offensive flurry out of the break and tripled its lead to 15 with 13:06 remaining, its largest lead of the game.

The Bullets would rally the following three minutes to pull within nine, but it was the closest Gettysburg would get. CLU guard Deshion Inniss played a major role in squashing any comeback attempts by scoring 15 of his 19 points in the final 10 minutes

The championship game brought out the best in both teams and standout individual performances.

CLU’s Andy Meier recorded a double-double by halftime and ended up with 12 points and 20 rebounds. Mychal Owens also notched season highs and his first double-double of the year with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guard Inniss scored a game-high 19 points, including a trio of three pointers and went 5-of-6 from the foul line in the final 48 seconds to seal the win.

Gettysburg’s Joe Spierenburg made his presence felt near the Bullets basket by blocking 12 Kingsmen shot attempts. The mark not only improves his previous school record, but is also a Centennial Conference record. He was the third player in Sunday’s game to have a double-double, scoring 13 points. Teammate Chris Dorsey scored a tournament best 41 points, with 16 coming against Cal Lutheran.

In the TFFL third place game, Concordia (WI) University defeated Bethany Lutheran (MN) College in overtime, 101-89. Both teams shot well from the floor and the Vikings of BLC once again came back late in the second half to force overtime. However, Concordia connected on 5-of-7 field goals and 9-of-10 free throws, in contrast to a 2-for-11 shooting and 4-for-4 performance from the charity stripe in the overtime period. The Falcons David Lipanot, DeShaun Robinson and Steve Huenink all scored 21 or more points.

2007-2008 Thrivent Financial for Lutherans All-Tournament Team is as follows:

Andy Meier (CLU) - MVP

Lucas Gums (CLU)

Corey Dorsey (GC)

Dan Capkin (GC)

Steve Huenink (CUW)

Tommy Saffert (BLC)

Cal Lutheran (7-1) will host the No. 3 ranked University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (8-1) on Wednesday, January 1, 2008 at 7:30 pm. The Pointers are coming of 73-63 road win over No. 5 ranked Augustana (IL) College while the Kingsmen have won six straight games and have defeated all opponents it has faced.

For complete tournament information, please visit Thrivent Financial for Lutherans tournament page.