Game Time... Top-seed and fourth-ranked Northwestern begins play at the 2019 NAIA Division II National Championship against (RV) Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) on Thursday, March 7. Tip-off at the Tyson Events Center is scheduled for 3:30pm. Northwestern, the No.1 seed in the Cramer Bracket, owns a 26-4 record. The Tigers, owning a No.8 seed, is 21-11 overall. 

Follow the game live via these different options:  Live Stats | KSOU broadcast | NAIA Video (fee required)

Championship Schedule | 

All-Time...Northwestern and Olivet Nazarene have played just once prior to Thursday's match-up when the Red Raiders earned a 110-89 win on a neutral floor in 2009-10 at the Trinity Christian Classic. 

How They Qualified...The Red Raiders earned the first of nine at-large bids into the 32-team field and are one of six teams from the Great Plains Athletic Conference, most of all leagues, in this year's field. Olivet Nazarene won the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference postseason tournament championship to earn the second of the league's two auto bids (St.Francis-Ill.). They join St. Francis and Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) as teams from the CCAC in the field. 

Championship History...Northwestern is making its third straight and 16th overall appearance at the championship, owning a 52-11 overall record, the most wins at the championship. The Red Raiders have won five titles, also the most in the history of the championship, and reached the semifinals last season before losing to Concordia. 
    1999: 1-1
    2000: 4-1 (runner-up)
    2001: 5-0 (championship)
    2002: 2-1 (quarters)
    2006: 3-1 (semi's)
    2007: 1-1
    2008: 5-0 (championship)
    2009: 3-1 (semi's)
    2010: 5-0 (championship)
    2011: 5-0 (championship)
    2012: 5-0 (championship)
    2013: 3-1 (semi's)
    2014: 2-1 (quarters)
    2017: 1-1
    2018: 3-1 (semi's)

Olivet Nazarene is making its fourth straight and 10th overall national championship tournament appearance. They are 5-7 all-time at the championship with their best finish in 2015-16 when they reached the quarterfinals. 

Scouting Reports...

    (RV) Olivet Nazarene Tigers:  14-6 (4th), 21-11                Head Coach: Lauren Glenn (7th year)

ONU brings a four-game win streak into Thursday's opening round game, defeating Trinity International in the final game of the regular season, followed by three wins in the CCAC Conference Tournament. They recorded a pair of upsets, defeating #14 St.Francis in the semi's and #17 in the conference title game, in their last two games. The Tigers finished fourth in the regular season, behind St.Francis, Cardinal Stritch and St.Xavier. They are 4-6 against ranked teams and 0-2 against teams from the GPAC, losing to both Morningside and Briar Cliff at the beginning of the season.

Glenn owns a 70% win percentage in her seven seasons as the Tigers' head coach, guiding her teams to 20+ wins every season. She has led ONU to the national tournament in six of her seven seasons, including four straight. Glenn's best season was a 29-6 campaign in 2015-16 that ended with a loss in the quarterfinals. Glenn returns two starters and seven players from a 2017-18 team that went 23-10, losing to Indiana Wesleyan in the first round. 

The Tigers opened the season ranked 18th in the preseason poll and then dropped out of the ranking for most of the season, until the very end when they received votes.

ONU once again is the top scoring team in the NAIA, averaging 95 points per game; this is the 13th time in the last 15 seasons the Tigers have led the nation in scoring

The Tigers lead the NAIA with 420 three-pointers made, shooting 34% from the arc; they rank second in the NAIA in steals and lead the nation in turnovers forced (29 per game)

ONU has pulled down 610 offensive rebounds, top in the NAIA

four players have made at least 64 three-pointers this season; 6 players have made 35 or more

By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 94.6ppg (1st)
    Scoring Defense: 79ppg 
    Field Goal Percentage: 41% 
    3pt Percentage: 34%, 420 3pters (1st) 
    Free Throw Percentage: 68% 
    Rebound Margin: -1

Top Players:  (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Jess Learned - (All-American, 3x all-conf) 17.3ppg, 73 3pters, 7.4rpg, 103 assists
    Sammy Stejskal - (All-Conference) 13.8ppg, 72 3pters, 66 steals
    Kayla Ross (All-Conference) 8.7ppg, 196 assists (2nd)
    Zanna Myers - 8.3ppg, 64 3pters
    Karina Smits - 7.8ppg, 77 3pters

No.4 Northwestern Red Raiders: 19-3 (T1st), 26-4        Head Coach: Chris Yaw (8th year)

Northwestern was the GPAC co-regular season champion. along with Concordia, going 19-3 in league play. They lost to Dakota Wesleyan in the conference semifinals and received the first at-large bid into the 32-team championship.

Five Red Raiders received all-conference honors, led by Kassidy De Jong and Darbi Gustafson with first team accolades. Haley Birks was a second team pick and both Anna Kiel and Sammy Blum were honorable mention.

By the Numbers: (NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 84.2ppg (4th)
    Scoring Defense: 63ppg
    Field Goal Percentage: 48% (1st)
    3pt Percentage: 37% (5th), 235 3pters 
    Free Throw Percentage: 75% 
    Rebound Margin: +10 (1st)

Top Players: (GPAC rank / NAIA rank-if top 10) *returning starter
     *Kassidy De Jong (3x All-American) 17.9ppg, 64 3pters, 8rpg 
     *Darbi Gustafson (3x All-Conference) 15.1ppg, 53%, 7.7rpg, 35 blocks    
     *Haley Birks (3x All-Conference) 12.5ppg, 86 FT % (10th), 3.8rpg
     Sammy Blum - 10.7ppg, 74 3pters, 46% 3pt (3rd), 106 assists