LUBBOCK, Texas – Black Hills State men's basketball defeated No. 4 seed Colorado Mesa 72-62 Tuesday night to win the 2022 South Central Regional Championship and advance to the Elite Eight.

The Yellow Jackets (25-7, 17-4 RMAC) never trailed in the game and led by as many as 12 points on their way to the regional title.

Joel Scott made history, becoming BHSU's all-time single-season scoring leader, now sitting at 743 points this season, breaking the previous record of 733. He also recorded his 20th double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

Adam Moussa finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

PJ Hayes went 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, scoring 13 while Sindou Cisse totaled eight rebounds, three assists and six points.

Moussa and Scott were named to the All-Tournament team following the game, along with CMU's Trevor Baskin and Jared Small, while Scott took home tournament MVP.

The Yellow Jackets took an early lead using a Moussa jumper and Ryker Cisarik trey to hold a 5-2 advantage four minutes into the game. Later, a Donovan jumper followed by a Moussa three extended BHSU's lead to 18-12 midway through the first.

But a pair of Maverick threes would cut the Yellow Jacket lead down to 22-21 as the clock ticked into the final few minutes of the half.

Both teams battled with neither finding separation until back-to-back layups from Moussa and Scott moved the Yellow Jackets ahead 34-29 with 1:02 to go, eventually taking a 34-31 lead into the break.

A quick 7-0 spurt out of the break gave BHSU their first 10-point lead, 41-31 in the opening minutes of the second. CMU would keep things close, though, and stay within striking distance as BHSU led 51-46 with 7:39 remaining.

The Mavericks pulled back to within one, 51-50, with under six minutes to play before a pair of huge 3-pointers by Hayes gave the Yellow Jackets some breathing room as they led 60-51 with 3:13 to go.

BHSU eventually got back out to a double-digit lead on Hayes' fourth three of the game before a Cisse layup on their next possession gave the Yellow Jackets a 67-55 lead with under two to play.

In the final seconds, BHSU would head to the charity stripe and go 5-7 to seal the win, 72-62.

Up Next
The Yellow Jackets advance to the Elite Eight held in Evansville, Ind. from March 22-26. The teams that have advanced to the Elite Eight will be re-seeded at a later date before the final bracket is revealed, determining BHSU's next opponent and game time.