Back-to-back: Bruins down V-Hawks to win NSAA Title

WATERTOWN, S.D. -- Paulo Araujo hit the first of two free throws with 3.2 seconds left to give the Bellevue University men's basketball team a 69-65 win over Viterbo University on Sunday evening in the 2022 North Star Athletic Association Championship Game at the Watertown Civic Arena.

Bellevue improves to 20-12 overall and secures the NSAA's lone bid to the NAIA National Tournament. The conference championship is their 35^th overall, 15^th tournament title, and third North Star crown.

Viterbo finishes their season with a 17-13 overall mark.

Vinny Belcaster led four Bruins in double figures with 15 points and dished out six assists to take home unofficial NSAA Tournament MVP honors. In three tournament games, he averaged 20 points and 4.3 rebounds while dishing out 11 assists. Paulo Araujo scored 13, Isaiah Bates added 11, and Taylor Pomeroy contributed 10.

Brady Polk scored 17 to pace the top-seeded V-Hawks but needed 14 shots in which to do so. Robert Cunitz scored 11 and Nolan Martin tossed in 10. Bellevue limited NSAA Player of the Year Jack Monis to just seven points.

Martin hit a three-pointer on the game's first possession but Bellevue countered by scoring the next seven points, including the first five from Paulo Araujo.

Bellevue stayed in front until the media timeout with 8:49 to play. Vaj Rice scored just before the break to start an 8-0 run over 1:49 that saw Isaiah Bates convert a traditional three-point play giving BU a 21-12 advantage.

The V-Hawks hit back with a 9-2 scoring run of their own to pull within one possession. Rice sandwiched a pair of layups around a Jerome Bynum trifecta as the Bruins closed the half on a 7-1 run in the final 2:13.

At the break, BU held a 30-22 advantage led by Araujo's 12 points and seven from Rice.

The Bruins pushed their lead to a game-high 11 points as they came out hot to open the second half. Pomeroy capped off a 10-5 run to go up 40-29.

Viterbo did not go away, tying the game at 42-apiece on a pair of free throws from Polk. Belcaster immediately responded for the Bruins, hitting a step-back trey at the 11:03 mark.

Bellevue remained in front the rest of the way, though Viterbo cut the deficit to a point twice – at 57-56 and 63-62 – the latter as Polk converted three free throws after Bellevue's second post player fouled out of the game.

Belcaster again came up huge, drilling another step-back trey with 1:16 remaining. Polk hit a contested three with 17.9 seconds left before Belcaster stepped to the free-throw line and sank a pair with 15.1 seconds on the clock.

A missed three from Nolan Martin saw Araujo come down with the rebound and hit the first of two free throws to secure the victory as the V-Hawks desperation heave caromed off the rim.