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ARCATA, Calif. - Cal State San Marcos earned its third win in as many days to claim the first CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship in program history with an 85-71 victory over Cal State San Bernardino.  
Cal State San Marcos faced a difficult road to the championship as the bracket matched them against the hottest team in the league (Cal Poly Pomona), the region's No. 1 team (Chico State), and the CCAA regular-season champion (Cal State San Bernardino); but they found a way to post double-figure wins and advance to the next round each time.
 
Today, the Cougars jumped out on a 19-2 run to start the game and put the Yotes back on their heels from the start. Cal State San Marcos went up as many as 20 (26-6) midway through the half before CSUSB started to chip away at the lead. They went on a 9-0 run to bring it back to 11 (26-15), and they were able to cut it to nine (43-34) at the half.
 
The Yotes kept chipping away a 3-pointer by Darius Lubom brought the deficit down to two points (71-69) with 4:28 remaining. The Cougars then hit another run which sealed the game. They scored 11 straight points over the next two minutes to extend their advantage back to 13 (82-69) with under two minutes on the clock. A couple of free throws sealed the victory for the Cougars.
 
Blake Seits was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after leading the Cal State San Marcos in scoring for all three games in Arcata. In the championship, he hit four 3-pointers and scored 25 points to go along with seven rebounds and two steals. He finished the tournament with 64 points on 22-of-37 shooting, including 13-of-23 from 3-point range.
 
Jayce McCain added 13 points and eight assists. Greg Milton III chipped in with 10 points, and Tyrone Nesby came off the bench to score 12 points in just 13 minutes as the Cougars' bench outscored the Yotes' 22-8.
 
Brandon Knapper went 11-of-20 from the field and 5-of-11 from 3-point range to lead Cal State San Bernardino with 33 points. He is the first student-athlete to ever score 30 or more points in back-to-back games, and his 67 points are the most-ever for a two-game stretch.
 
Both teams will now await to see where they will play in the regional. The NCAA Selection Show will be Sunday, March 6 at 7:30 p.m. on NCAA.com. 

All-Tournament Team
Blake Seits, Cal State San Marcos (MVP)
Jayce McCain, Cal State San Marcos
Alex Gil-Fernandez, Cal State San Marcos
Brandon Knapper, Cal State San Bernardino
Chris Seeley, Cal State Dominguez Hills