ROCHESTER,MN – West Bladen grad Sayaun Dent was named the Most Valuable Player Friday night as he led his Sandhills Community College Flyers to the NJCAA Division III National Championship with a 93-89 victory over Mohawk Valley Community College (NY).
Dent connected on 13 of 16 shots from the floor to score a game-high 27 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in the title game. An early Dent jumper edged the Flyers ahead 16-15 then a trio of Dent jumpers kept Sandhills within 33-31. The 6-3 sophmore totaled 10 points in the 1st half, but the Flyers trailed 50-47 at halftime.
The Elizabethtown native fired in 2 lay-ups, a 3-point bomb and another jumper to spark a 12-4 spurt that vaulted Sandhills ahead 62-60 with 14.22 left. Another Dent lay-up and jumper kept the Flyers with 78-77 at the 5:11 mark.
With the Flyers ahead by a basket Dent drained a key jumper that padded the lead to 90-86 with 2:07 remaining. Cary native Elijah Idlett sank 3 free throws in the final minute for the Flyers.
Dent posted 2 double-doubles and finished with 57 points and 27 rebounds as the Flyers won 3 games in 2 days to claim the national title. The tournament schedule was shortened due to the coronavirus.
After winning their opening game Thursday, the Flyers had to win 2 games Friday starting with a 94-86 victory over host Rochester Tech in a game that began at 11 a.m.
Dent recorded a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in the semi-final win. The Flyers led for most of the game, but the Yellowjackets rode a 10-0 spurt to take a 67-66 lead with 4:40 left to play. Dent ignited a 15-2 Flyer run with a basket, put back a rebound then stole the ball and pitched ahead to Fairmont grad Corry Addison for a lay-up. An Idlett 3-point play stretched the Flyer lead to 81-69.
Flyer Coach Mike Apple told the Sandhills CC website after the Rochester win, “Sayaun got in foul trouble, but he was great down the stretch.”
The Flyers who entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed won their final 18 games in a row to finish with a 34-2 record. Dent led the national champions on the season averaging 17.8 points and 8 rebounds per game.
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