BECKLEY, West Virginia -- No. 1 (East) WVU Tech men's basketball battled all the way to the end against No. 1 (West) Indiana University Kokomo before claiming the River States Conference Championship with a score of 85-83. The Golden Bears will move onto the NAIA DII National Championship in Sioux Falls, South Dakota with a record of 29-4 while the Cougars hold a record of 25-7.

With three seconds to play, IU Kokomo had an 83-82 lead before senior Elisha Boone drove the length of the floor to pour in a layup from the lane, giving Tech the one point advantage. Boone was fouled on the play and dropped in the and-1 then the Golden Bears' defense had a huge stop to help secure Tech's victory.

Boone recorded a game-high 32 points while grabbing eight boards. He also posted seven assists and two steals.

Fellow senior Brandon Shingles finished 4-for-7 from three-point range towards 12 points. Shingles also marked three assists and a rebound.

Sophomore Tamon Scruggs had 11 points and four rebounds for the Gold and Blue.

Senior Tommy Collins posted nine points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Sophomore Will Fox poured in eight points to go with two rebounds and two steals.

Fellow classmate Junior Arrey dished five assists and had four points, three rebounds and a steal.

As a team, Tech shot 47.9 percent (35-for-73) from the field while IU Kokomo finished at 52.6 percent (30-for-57). The Golden Bears did hold a slight advantage under the boards, 36-33.

McDonald's (2930 Robert C. Byrd Drive, Beckley) will host both the women's and men's basketball squads for the Golden Bear Athletics National Basketball Championship Send-off tomorrow, Wednesday (February 27).