LANGSTON, Okla.- Five years and seven days ago, Ave Maria's only trip to the NAIA Men's Basketball Tournament ended with a loss to the Moundbuilders of Southwestern College.

The 2023-24 Gyrenes share none of the players, nor any of the coaches, from that team. 

But for those that love AMU, that Thursday afternoon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota made Friday night in Langston, Oklahoma just a little sweeter.

The Ave Maria University men's basketball team earned their first ever national tournament win at C.F. Gayles Field House on the campus of Langston University, beating the ninth-ranked team in the nation, those same Southwestern Moundbuilders, by a 97-92 score. The Gyrenes came up big when it mattered most, scoring 30 points in the final ten minutes to rally from an eight-point deficit and become the only nine-seed in the tournament to advance to Saturday.

Gyrene head coach Jamon Copeland, who returned to Ave Maria in 2020 after being the school's first head coach, said postgame that if he needed any further proof that coming back to Ave Maria was the right move, Friday night provided it.

"I tell my boss all the time; I left once, I'm never leaving again," Copeland remarked. "I couldn't be more humbled and proud to get the first national tournament win at a University that I'm so passionate about."

Ave Maria showed remarkable tenacity, battling a stout Southwestern team and a partisan crowd to continuously erase Moundbuilder leads. Junior guard Nick Filchner said the Gyrenes never deviated from the plan, even when a fast-paced Moundbuilder offense went on runs.

"Basketball is a game of runs, and everyone knows that," Filchner said. "When a team goes on a run, we're going to respond, so we weren't really stressed out - we were ready to go on ours."

The first half was marked by runs for both teams. After a slow start from both sides, Southwestern built their lead to eleven points on three occasions, including a 34-23 edge with 6:30 to play in the half. Ave Maria responded with a 17-4 run, taking a lead on an and-one three from Jack Watkins. The final four points of the half went to Southwestern, who held a 42-40 lead at halftime.

Most national observers expected the AMU-Southwestern matchup to light up the scoreboard, and they got their wish in a second half that saw 107 points scored between the teams. The lead traded hands more than a half dozen times in the first ten minutes of the frame, before Southwestern built an eight-point lead, 75-67, with ten minutes to play.

From there, Ave Maria outscored Southwestern 30-17 down the stretch. However, the game did come down to the final minute, with the score tied at 92 with 1:27 to play. In the final 87 seconds, the Gyrenes got stops on all four Moundbuilder possessions, and made three free throws, as well as a clutch jumper from Michael Klekas that made it 95-92 with 37 seconds left.

Ave Maria's offense output was led by the trio of Filchner, Watkins, and Klekas, who combined for 77 of Ave Maria's 97 points. Klekas logged a double-double with 20 points and 16 rebounds, while Filchner and Watkins both had five rebounds to go with 31 and 26 points, respectively.

The night was especially sweet for Watkins, who was playing in front of several friends and family in Langston, which is located just over 200 miles from his hometown of Decatur, Texas. In addition to his offensive output, Watkins drew the defensive assignment for much of the game on the nation's leading scorer, Cevin Clark, and held him to 6-of-22 shooting.

"It was great to play close to home and have my family out here tonight," Watkins said. "Our whole game plan was to shut down Clark, and we all as a team did a great job defensively."

The next item for the Gyrenes to cross off their checklist would be a first-ever trip to Kansas City, but the task will be a tall one. Ave Maria will battle the host Langston Lions, the nation's second-ranked team, at 6:00 p.m. local time Saturday.