Bethel basketball faces familiar foe in NAIA Tournament quarterfinals

Bethel University men's basketball coach Steve Drabyn is sure of two things as he leads his team into the NAIA Sweet 16.

The Pilots are well prepared thanks to playing in one of the nation's premier small school basketball conferences and they will be familiar with their next foe.

No. 14 Bethel (24-8) faces No. 2 LSU Alexandria (30-2) at 6 p.m. (ET) Friday in Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City. The winner advances to the 8 p.m. quarterfinals Saturday against the Baker (Kan.) (30-3) and Oklahoma Wesleyan (25-7) winner. The tourney semifinals are March 24 with the national title game on March 25.

The Pilots, who went 14-4 in the rugged Crossroads League, beat LSU Alexandria 85-67 in the first round of the 2024 national tourney before a 79-76 loss to Central Baptist College finished its season at 20-11.

"We're extremely battle tested with the game experience we have from playing in the Crossroads League," Drabyn said. "It has prepared us for close, tough games. Our schedule is the third toughest in the country.

"We have a good feel for LSU Alexandria and a familiarity of them from beating them last year. But that also gives them motivation too."

LSU Alexandria is a No. 1 seed, while the Pilots are a No. 4. The Crossroads League had six teams in the 64-team field, with Bethel and Grace College still left.

Second-seeded Grace College (28-5) which plays Saint Mary-of-the-Woods at 4 p.m. Thursday, has a roster that includes former area standouts Carter Stoltzfus, a senior from Northridge High School and sophomore Ian Raasch, a NorthWood High School product. Grace College, a 2024 NAIA national semifinalist, is coming off its third straight conference regular-season title and a fourth straight conference tournament title.

Bethel, which started 9-0 in league play, has flourished with a team-first mentality, Drabyn said.

"Player leadership," responded Drabyn quickly about the key to this year's team. "Our leadership team of Trent Edwards, Jameir Jefferson, Andrew Hedrick, Preston Phillips and James Anderson have done a great job.

"The second part is the unselfishness of this team. We just have a bunch of guys who do not care who gets the credit. That's such an underrated value and we have so much of that on this team. "

The Pilots advanced to Kansas City while getting a combined 93 points from their bench in home tournament wins over Peru State College, 83-69, and Morningside University (Iowa), 93-84.

Nine Bethel players average five or more points and 10 average at least 10 minutes. Graduate student Trent Edwards leads the offense at 12.7 points with sophomore Luke McBride at 12.6, junior Alona Peciulis at 12.2 and graduate student Preston Phillips at 10.6.

Edwards starred at NorthWood High School and Phillips was a Jimtown HIgh School standout. Sophomores Jameir Jefferson, Colin Comer and Beau Jacquay were stellar off the bench in two tournament wins.

Bethel senior Preston Phillips (23) makes a pass around Huntington’s Lane Sparks during an NAIA men’s basketball game Wednesday, January 29, 2025, at Bethel University in Mishawaka.

LSU Alexandria, a guard oriented, athletic group, averages 83.6 points and was ranked No. 1 early this season. It is led by 6-3 senior guard Kashie Natt, who averages 20 points and 10 rebounds and leads the team in steals and assists.

"They are super talented and super athletic," Drabyn said of the Generals. "The first key for us is to limit our live ball turnovers. The second is rebounding. We outrebound our opponents by 7.2 per game and they outrebound theirs by 8.5. So, rebounding will be key."

Drabyn, who starred as a sweet-shooting guard at both LaPorte High School and Belmont University, said Bethel needs to seize the opportunity.

"I try to instill in our players that all the ordinary plays can make such a big difference in a big game," Drabyn stated. "It's the effort and focus that you put into each and every possession."

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: The Bethel Pilots are headed to the NAIA Tournament quarterfinals

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