Teams Inside the Pod
#1 Lewis-Clark St.
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18-1 Overall
Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament Champions
#4 Overall Seed
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Ranks Numberย 3ย in Division I in Defensive
Rebounds per Game (32.632)
Ranks Numberย 3ย in Division I in Field Goal
Pct Defense (0.376)
Ranks Numberย 4ย in Division I in Scoring
Margin (20.789)
Ranks Numberย 6ย in Division I in Scoring
Defense per Game (65.421)
Ranks Numberย 8ย in Division I in Total
Rebound Margin (9.789)
Ranks Numberย 8ย in Division I in Field Goal
Pct (0.508)
Ranks Numberย 8ย in Division I in Assists per
Game (18.737)
Ranks Numberย 9ย in Division I in Total
Rebounds per Game (42.579)
Ranks Numberย 13ย in Division I in
Assist/Turnover Ratio (1.391)
Ranks Numberย 15ย in Division I in 3-Pt Fg
Pct Defense (0.304)
Ranks Numberย 22ย in Division I in 3-Pt Fg
Pct (0.383)
Ranks Numberย 23ย in Division I in Scoring
Offense per Game (86.211)
Ranks Numberย 30ย in Division I in 3-Pt Fg
Made per Game (9.789)
Ranks Numberย 33ย in Division I in Total
Rebound Defense (32.789)
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Ranks Numberย 41ย in Division I in Total
Assists (356)
#2 Vanguard
8-3 Overall
GSAC West Champions
#32 Overall Seed
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Ranks Numberย 1ย in Division I in Total Rebound Defense (29.091)
Ranks Numberย 9ย in Division I in Total Rebound Margin (9.727)
Ranks Numberย 23ย in Division I in Defensive Rebounds per Game (30.091)
Ranks Numberย 23ย in Division I in Field Goal Pct Defense (0.409)
Ranks Numberย 27ย in Division I in Scoring Margin (9.909)
Ranks Numberย 30ย in Division I in Scoring Defense per Game (70.273)
Ranks Numberย 31ย in Division I in 3-Pt Fg Pct Defense (0.313)
Ranks Numberย 35ย in Division I in Field Goal Pct (0.482)
Ranks Numberย 45ย in Division I in 3-Pt Fg Pct (0.368)
Ranks Numberย 48ย in Division I in Assists per Game (15.273)
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Ranks Numberย 48ย in Division I in Assist/Turnover Ratio (1.135)
#3 BenU – Mesa
5-8 Overall
CalPac Tournament Champions
#46 Overall Seed
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Making 1st ever NAIA National Tournament appearanceย
Top Players
#12 Damek Mitchell 5’9 Sr. – 14.7ppg, 5.8rpg, 4.89apg
2020-21 CCC Player of the Year
2019-20 3rd Team All-Americanย
Ranks Numberย 32ย in Division I in Assists
per Game (4.895)
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Ranks Numberย 48ย in Division I in Total
Assists (93)
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Trystan Bradley 6’9 Jr. – 16.33ppg, 6.4rpg
2019-20 All-American
#24 Garrett White 6’4 Jr. – 14.2ppg, 6.7rpg
2020-21 All-GSAC
Ranks Numberย 8ย in Division I in Free Throw Pct (0.914)
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#5 Aziz Seck 6’7 Sr. – 12.5ppg, 5.9rpg
2020-21 All-GSAC
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#24 Maurice Walton 6’9 Sr. –
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Only played in 5 games.
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Points Per Game Leaders
1.ย ย ย ย ย Maurice Walton BenU – Mesaย ย 18.8ย
2.ย ย ย ย ย Trystan Bradley LCSCย ย 16.33ย
3.ย ย ย ย ย Damek Mitchell LCSCย ย 14.7ย
4.ย ย ย ย ย Tre Carolina BenU Mesaย ย 14.2ย ย
5.ย ย ย ย ย Austin Denham Benu Mesaย ย 14.2ย
Rebounds Per Game Leaders
1. Maurice Walton BenU Mesa 10.4
2. Jake Albright LCSC 6.81
3. Garrett White Vanguard 6.7
4. Trystan Bradley LCSC 6.4
5. Aziz Seck Vanguard 5.91
Assist Per Game Leaders
1. Isaac Davis Vanguard 7.0
2. Damek Mitchell LCSC 4.89
3. Jake Albright LCSC 3.43
4. Tre Carolina BenU Mesa 3.08
5. Khalil Stevenson LCSC 2.68
Matchups
The West Coast NAIA leagues all had to come up with unique ways to get their auto-bids. The GSAC was one of them as they elected to not have a conference tournament. Without it, the winners of each division were given the conference auto-bids!
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The CalPac was unique in the sense that only 3 teams finished the season. Those 3 teams ended up playing in a round robin type tournament with BenU Mesa coming away with theย CalPac regular season. This team has played some D1 games in exhibitions, so they have played up in competition and will be tested in that sense.
This Lewis-Clark State team was able to get 19 regular season games in plus a few extra exhibition games. Their only regular season loss was a road loss to #5 Arizona Christian. A loss that they turned around and avenged the day after. Mitchell is one of the best PG’s in the country and Trystan Bradley has proven to be a tough matchup for most teams. Austin Johnson is one of the best young coaches in the NAIA and has already had the Warriors in one Final Four. They will have a great shot to reach another one.
vs.
Winner of #2 Vanguard vs #3 BenU Mesa
Vanguard and BenU Mesa didn’t end up playing one another during the year, but they do have a like opponent in Saint Katherine who is in the CalPac with BenU Mesa. Those two teams really played some fun games and if anything, it should give BenU Mesa a shot of confidence that they can play with Vanguard.ย
Without a ton of games under their belt, it’s hard to get a great gauge on Vanguard and BenU-Mesa. One thing is for certain, the winner of Round 1 will have their hands full with a very good Lewis-Clark State team. It’s no secret that the Warriors are one of our favorites in the country to watch. They are a tough group who play well together. They are led by one of the Top players in the NAIA in Damek Mitchell. Damek is a winner and competes hard. It’s hard to think he will let the Warriors lose on their home floor!
