KANSAS CITY, MO:  The defending National Champion Texas Wesleyan University Men's Basketball team (22-11) fell by a final score of 70-61 against Graceland University (25-10) in the 81st Annual NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship on Thursday.
 
The 15th ranked Rams never could gain any traction offensively against the 23rd ranked Yellow Jackets in what was a 4 vs. 5 seed matchup.
 
The Rams hit just one of their first seven shots from the field, but they played terrific defense in the first half.  Texas Wesleyan limited Graceland to 27% shooting in the opening stanza.
 
In front of a raucous Graceland crowd the Yellow Jackets jumped ahead 23-12 before Branden Jenkins got hot.  The SAC Player of the Year scored the final 11 points of the half including three consecutive three-pointers in the last two-and-a-half minutes to level the game 23-23 at the break.
 
The Rams continued to defend well in the second half, holding Graceland to 37% shooting in the game.  However, the Yellow Jackets were +13 in the rebound column.  Graceland grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and blasted the Rams 26-4 in second chance points.
 
Graceland led by as many as 14 in the second half, but the Rams did make a late push.  Trailing 63-50 with 2:36 to play, Jenkins and Ryan Harris combined to score eight unanswered points and make it a manageable 5-point deficit with 1:24 to play.
 
Unfortunately, Graceland had an answer as Jordan Dembley knocked down a three and LT Davis was good for two at the line to stretch the lead back to double-figures.
 
"That was a tough environment," Head Coach Brennen Shingleton commented after the game.  "We fought hard, but at the end of the day it just wasn't enough.  They killed us on the glass.  We gave up twenty extra possessions and then we just couldn't get the ball to drop.  We had some guys play hard, but the production just wasn't there tonight."
 
Branden Jenkins went for 30 points in his final game as a Ram.  Juwan Jones added 15 points off the Texas Wesleyan bench.
 
The loss ends Texas Wesleyan's season at 22-11.  The Rams won a third consecutive Sooner Athletic Conference Regular Season Championship by going 14-6 in the nation's toughest conference. 
 
Ramblings

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- The Rams were making their 16th NAIA National Tournament appearance.  They have an all-time record of 18-14 in tournament play having won titles in 2006 and 2017.  Their tournament history dates back to the 4th Annual NAIB tournament in 1940.
 
- This was Texas Wesleyan's 9th tournament appearance since 2006.
 
- Branden Jenkins averaged an even 22 points per game on the season, ranking sixth in the NAIA. 
 
- Ryan Harris closed out his Texas Wesleyan career averaging 18.9 points per game on the season and scoring 872 points in his two seasons.
 
- Juwan Jones is the Rams' leading sorcerer among those who will return next year at 16.6 points per game this season.
 
- The Sooner Athletic Conference had five teams qualify for the tournament this season.  Those teams went 2-3 in first round action with Oklahoma City and Wayland Baptist advancing to the second round.