Thomas More men rally late to defeat Bethany, 78-73, to repeat as PAC Tournament champions

By Don Owen
NKyTribune reporter

If this continues, Crestview Hills will soon be known as the city of champions.

It would be a fitting title after what happened Saturday at Thomas More College.

First, the Thomas More women’s basketball team captured its 11th consecutive Presidents’ Athletic Conference tournament championship with an easy 93-51 victory against Washington & Jefferson. Three hours later, the top-seeded Thomas More men were also hoisting the PAC championship trophy after knocking off Bethany (W.Va), 78-73.

Damion King collected a double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds as the Saints (23-5 record) repeated as PAC champions. Brandon Horne added 17 points and eight rebounds for Thomas More, which rallied from a 58-54 deficit in the final 6:37 of the game to pull out the win and earn a return trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

With Thomas More trailing 58-54, Ralph Stone scored two straight buckets to tie the game at 58-all. Stone later knocked down a jumper to give the Saints a 62-60 lead, and Thomas More slowly pulled away from the second-seeded Bison (16-12) in front of a crowd of 1,042 at the Connor Convocation Center.

Calique Jones scored 22 points to lead Bethany, which used a 20-6 advantage in points off turnovers to stay close. The Bison shot just 41.4 percent from the field and allowed Thomas More to shoot 9-for-18 from 3-point range.

Michael Griffin of Thomas More buried four treys to finish with 12 points. Stone chipped in eight points – all in the second half — and seven rebounds. Simon Clifford and Ryne Callahan both finished with eight points for the Saints, who shot 45.8 percent from the field and won the rebounding battle by a 40-38 margin.

Pairings for the NCAA Division III Tournament will be announced Monday.