Midwestern State topped Washburn to advance to the NCAA Division II South Central Regional final on Tuesday night against Arkansas Tech, who defeated Tarleton State in overtime.

Midwestern State 72, Washburn 63
Fifth-ranked Midwestern State and 19th-ranked Washburn University took the floor on Sunday evening in the NCAA Division II semi-finals, with the Mustangs galloping away late for a 72-63 win and the chance to play for a regional championship.
 
Midwestern State was looking to advance to its third consecutive regional final, while Washburn was hoping to extend a seven-game winning streak and keep its season alive.
 
The top-seeded Mustangs started out quick with a 6-0 run before the Ichabods jumped on the board with a couple of free throws by junior Bobby Chipman.  The six points were Midwestern’s largest margin of the half.
 
Washburn took its first lead of the game at the 10:38 mark on a Jared Henry layup off a steal to make it 16-15 Ichabods.
 
Late in the first half, Midwestern used a 6-0 run over a 2:53 second time span to increase their lead to 33-26.
 
Ichabod junior Martin Mitchell drained a trey to cut it back to a four point game at the intermission, 33-29.
 
The lead changed hand six times and was tied twice in the first half.
 
Midwestern was led by senior Michael Loyd’s nine first half points, while Washburn was paced by Mitchell and Will McNeill’s six points.
 
McNeill, the Ichabod’s leading scorer at 20.1 points per game, heated up for Washburn in the second half, connecting on seven of 11 shots from the field and one of two from the free throw line for 16 points.
 
The Mustangs’ David Terrell picked up his fourth foul of the contest with 11:19 remaining in the game, but the rest of the defense picked up the slack.
 
Senior Keonte Logan, a Wichita Falls native, connected on a three pointer at the 10:23 mark to give Midwestern a six point advantage at 56-50.
 
Logan and McNeill collided right in front of the scorer’s table at the 6:13 and Logan briefly had to exit the game before returning.
 
Terrell, playing with four fouls, reentered the game with 5:52 remaining and made his presence felt immediately, clearing out a path for a Jeff Grayer lay in to give the Mustangs a three point lead.
 
On the next possession, Midwestern extended its lead to five with a steal and layup from Loyd, part of a 6-0 run over 2:30.
 
Loyd’s alley-oop pass to Terrell for a slam with 1:21 left got the tense home crowd to their feet and give Midwestern a 65-59 lead.
 
The Mustangs ended the game on a 9-4 run to put away the Ichabods.
 
The Mustangs were led by Loyd’s 21 points on six of 13 shooting from the field and eight of ten from the charity stripe, while Darrick Thomas added nine points for Midwestern State.
 
McNeill had a game-high 20 points for Washburn, while Mitchell added eight for the Ichabods.
 
Midwestern State improves to 28-3 overall with the win and advance to the NCAA Division II South Central Regional final on Tuesday night against the Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys, the three-seed in the tournament, the game will tip-off at 7 p.m. at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
 
Washburn closes their season at 25-8.

Arkansas Tech 64, Tarleton State 63 (OT)
The No. 9 Texans ended their 2011-12 campaign in a tough 64-63 overtime loss to No. 15 Arkansas Tech Sunday in Wichita Falls.  Tarleton ends the year 27-6 and sends six seniors off with at least a share of the Lone Star Conference Championship.

Senior forward Fabian Wilson opened the scoring at the 19:15 mark with a tough jumper over the defender.    The Wonder Boys would respond though with the next five points of the contest to take a 5-2 advantage with 17:53 to go in the half.

Junior guard Brian Word added a nice baseline drive with 15:32 on the clock to give Tarleton a 6-5 lead.  That would be the last basket the Texans would score over the next 6:47 as they ran into their first drought.

By the end of the scoreless stretch, Tarleton trailed ATU 14-6 with 8:45 left in the first half.  Wilson’s layup ended the drought, but the Texans still found themselves in a big hole.

The Tarleton guard play would step up over the next few minutes as the Texans clawed their way back into the game.  Free throws by Chris Harrell and Coleman Furst made it a 15-15 ball game with under six minutes to go.

Senior guard Shedrick Haynes nailed a huge three with 3:40 on the clock to give Tarleton their first lead since the 13:32 mark.

Like the rest of the half though, ATU would quickly answer and tie the game once again at 18-18.  The Wonder Boys took control down the stretch and blanked the Texans over the final three minutes of the half.

Wilson’s buzzer beater pulled Tarleton back within four as the Texans headed into the locker rooms down 24-20.

In the first half, Tarleton shot 31.8 percent from the floor and 25 percent from three-point range.  The Texans did hit all five of their free throw attempts however and out-rebounded the Wonder Boys 17-16.

Wilson led with way with six points while Haynes and Harrell chipped in five points each.  Wilson and Harrell also grabbed five boards apiece.

Will Paul, the Stanford transfer for ATU, was the biggest headache for the Texans with 10 points and a pair of three-pointers.  The Wonder Boys shot 33.3 percent from the floor in the first half.

Just like at the start of the first half, Wilson opened up the scoring with a layup in the paint.  But once again, ATU would put a run together and took a 29-22 lead.

Word and Harrell got back-to-back layups to end the run and pulled Tarleton back within three.   Haynes then stepped up and hit a pair of big three pointers to keep the Texans within striking distance of the Wonder Boys.

ATU kept adding to their lead, but Tarleton would counter with patience on the offensive end.  The Texans struggled to get on top of the Wonder Boys, despite playing very well in the second half.

With 9:50 on the clock, ATU held a 43-38 advantage over Tarleton and continued to cause problems for the Texans defensively.

Wilson had a big bucket and a free throw with 8:12 to go in the game and put the Texans down two, 43-41.

Tarleton had several chances to tie the game while ATU had several opportunities to put the game away.  Neither team was able to capitalize.

The Texans used the free throw line to hang with the Wonder Boys as they got into the bonus early in the second half.  That meant the charity stripe would be a big part of the Tarleton offense.

ATU hit a big three with just over five minutes to go in the game, putting the Texans in a five-point hole.  Each turnover Tarleton committed proved costly as time started to become a factor.

The Texans attempted to shoot their way back into the ball game with three-point attempts, but Tarleton was unable to sink the well-needed bucket.  On the other end, the Wonder Boys converted their free throws and started to pile on their advantage.

Harrell finally hit the three Tarleton was looking for at the 2:35 mark in the second half, making it a 52-47 contest.  After a pair of ATU free throws, the Texans still trailed by seven.

Haynes got three points for Tarleton the old-fashioned way with a layup and a free throw.  Only two minutes remained though in the contest.

The Texans continued to fight and the defensive glass gave Tarleton some hope.  ATU failed to put the Texans away entirely.

With 20 seconds left, Harrell’s drive and layup made it a 56-54 contest with the winner moving on to the South Central Regional Championships.

The Tarleton press forced a turnover as Furst stole the pass, but a charge call gave ATU back the ball.  Once again it was up to the press to give the Texans a chance and for the second straight play, Tarleton got the ball back on an ATU turnover.

There was 7.9 seconds to go and Tarleton trailed by two.  The Texans had the ball and needed a bucket to tie and force overtime, or win the game on a three.

Haynes got the ball out of bounds, had constant pressure on him and lobbed a prayer off the backboard.  To add to the drama, Haynes’ shot went in for the tie, 56-56.

ATU went down the court with 3.6 seconds on the clock, but their buzzer-beating attempt hit the front of the rim and fell short, forcing overtime.

At the start of the overtime, the Wonder Boys landed the first punch and took a 58-56 lead.

Haynes countered with a big three at the 3:10 mark and gave the Texans’ their first lead since the first half.  ATU answered quickly however and took back a 60-59 advantage.  Another bucket put Tarleton down four with two minutes to go in overtime.

The Texans had a pair of layups fall short and were turned into Wonder Boy baskets.

Head coach Lonn Reisman called a time out with 26.5 seconds to go in the game as Tarleton trailed by three points.

Instead of a three, Tarleton got a tip-in from Wilson to make it a 62-61 ball game.  A quick foul sent ATU to the line for a pair, where they converted on both.

Now 12.2 seconds remained as the Texans had one last shot to keep their postseason hopes alive.  The Wonder Boys intelligently fouled Tarleton though and sent Haynes to the charity stripe.  The senior from Florida made both to make it a 64-63 contest.

The chess match continued with fouls and free throws being traded back and forth.

ATU missed both free throws on the other end, but the Texans took too long to get the ball down the court and a rushed game-winning attempt fell short.

Down the stretch, turnovers and missed chances doomed the Texans who ran into a very talented and deep Arkansas Tech squad.  The 2011-12 Tarleton season ended in Wichita Falls with a 64-63 overtime heartbreaker.

Overall, the Texans shot 33.9 percent from the floor and just 5-for-20 from three-point range.  The 20 turnovers hurt Tarleton’s chances in the end.

Haynes finished his career with 22 points while Harrell added 14 points and Wilson added 13 points, 16 boards.

Paul had 19 points and seven rebounds to lead the Wonder Boys, who will advance to the South Central Region Championship.

Reisman talked about the game and his seniors at the press conference.

"We had an outstanding season and had six great seniors," said Reisman.  "Our guys battled very hard and it came down to one shot.  We had plenty of good looks in the game and they just didn't fall.  I'm proud of our guys though.  Twenty-seven wins is tough and I hope they realize how much that means to the program."