EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Crimson Hawks erased a 10-point deficit midway through the second half and were nearly perfect from the foul line down the stretch in a 72-68 comeback win over Tarleton State in the semifinals of the 2015 NCAA Division II National Championships on Thursday night.
 
IUP will now advance to the program's second national championship game to play Florida Southern (34-1) on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. (EST).
 
Down 49-39 with 10:04 left to play, the Crimson Hawks (31-6) started chipping away. A three-pointer by Shawn Dyer (Marion, Ohio/Marion Harding) served as the catalyst of a 12-0 run over the next 4:34 to put IUP on top 51-49 with 5:30 to play.
 
After a layup by Damion Clemens tied the game at 51-51 on Tarleton State's next possession, the Crimson Hawks reeled off another seven straight points, including a layup and free throws by Daddy Ugbede (Gardena, Calif./Serra) and a three by Dyer.
 
The Texans (31-4) were able to cut it to five at 60-55 on a pair of foul shots by Mo Lee with 2:35 to play, but IUP quickly got its lead up to double-digits at 66-55 with under a minute left on six successful free throws by Dyer, Brandon Norfleet (Virginia Beach, Va. /Landstown) and Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter).
 
Tarleton State tried to catch up, rushing down the court and drilling three-pointers on three straight possessions, but the Crimson Hawks continued their success at the line to close out the 72-68 semifinal win.
 
The Crimson Hawks ended up finishing 28-of-34 from the foul line, including 24-of-28 in the second half and 12-of-14 over the final 1:24.
 
The group of Chance, Dyer, Norfleet and Ugbede combined for all of those made free throws, with Dyer finishing 10-of-11 from the line and a team-high 20 points in the full 40 minutes.
 
Chance also played 40 minutes, finishing with 14 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Norfleet added 11 points, six boards and three assists in 33 minutes.
 
Ugbede came off the bench to score 16 points, going 8-of-10 from the foul line. He also grabbed three rebounds, including two on the offensive end.
 
The Crimson Hawks did not shoot as well as Tarleton State, with the Texans making 55.1 percent of their shots compared to 47.4 percent for IUP. Both teams went 8-of-21 from three-point range. IUP narrowly out-rebounded the Texans 24-to-23 and forced them into 15 turnovers, including nine in the second half and four in the last 4:00 of the game.
 
Michael Hardge led Tarleton State with 17 points, going 7-of-11 from the field. Clemons came off the bench to score 16 points in 26 minutes, finishing a perfect 7-of-7 shooting and blocking three shots.
 
The Texans came into the semifinals as the number one seed from the South Central Region, having defeated Mount Olive 77-59 in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
 
This is the third straight victory over a ranked opponent for the Crimson Hawks, as Tarleton State is ranked seventh in Division II by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Azusa Pacific is ranked 14th by the NABC while Atlantic Region counterpart West Liberty is ranked fifth.
 
This is also head coach Joe Lombardi's second national championship appearance as the guided the Crimson Hawks to the title game in 2010. IUP fell to Cal Poly Pomona that year by a score of 65-53, denying the Crimson Hawks their first national championship.
 
Lombardi improved to 16-6 (.727) in the NCAA tournament and 204-76 in his nine seasons.
 
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk.