Box Score MONTGOMEREY, Ala. – The Belhaven men's basketball team is going back to the NAIA Division I National Championships in Kansas City, Mo after defeating Martin Methodist College in the 3rd place game of the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon. The Blazers punched their ticket with a 74-57 victory in the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl, securing the programs fourth overall appearance in school history.

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Belhaven's most recent venture west was in 2012 with previous trips in 2010 and 1972. The Blazers also went to the national tournament as an NAIA Division II program in 2001.

"This was an amazing win and an unreal feeling for our team," Belhaven Head Coach John Aiken said. "After the disappointing loss to Emmanuel yesterday, I can't be more proud of how our guys bounced back and picked themselves off the mat. It was an unbelievable effort by our team and we are excited to go back to Kansas City."

Martin Methodist (18-12) had the upper hand for the majority of the first half, sparked by an 11-3 run to start the game. Belhaven (18-14) stormed back to tie the contest at 11-11 on a pair of triples from junior Jordan Bedford and a two point bucket from senior Chris Cofield.

The Blazers only lead of the first half came at the 13:40 mark when senior Jonathan Ratliff dropped in two of his 18 points to make it a 15-13 contest. With the exception of three ties, the edge swung back in the Redhawks favor for the remainder of the half. Belhaven fell behind by as many as six points, but a late 4-0 run to close the half left them two points short at the break 36-34.

The Redhawks threatened to put the game out of reach early in the second half with a 10-2 run out the gate. The scoring burst resulted in a 46-36 lead with 15:41 to go after a triple by Darius Woods. However, the Blazers picked themselves up by the bootstraps and put together an improbable 24-0 run to grab the lead.

Cofield got things started with a clutch 15 foot jumper that not only started the Belhaven offense, but slowed the Redhawks who were gaining steam quickly. From there the Blazers took things one basket at a time and chipped away at the deficit. Jordan Bedford followed Cofield's basket with a triple and then put Belhaven in front 47-46 on a layup with just over 12 minutes left.

The Blazers kept the accelerator down for the next six minutes, and fittingly it was Cofield who capped the run with layup in the paint to make it 60-46. The Redhawks made one last push with a 5-0 run, but Datodrick Pinkston quickly shut that down with a pair of free throws, pushing Belhaven's advantage back to double digits. The Blazers led by as a many as 18 points before closing out the 74-57 victory.

Belhaven's Jordan Bedford led all scorers with 23 points on 8 of 15 shooting from the field. He knocked down four triples and was a perfect 3 for 3 at the free throw line. Ratliff turned in another monster game for the Blazers, posting 18 points and 14 rebounds for his third double double of the season. Ratliff was 9 of 12 from the floor with 11 of his boards coming on the defensive end. Cofield rounded out the double digit scorers with 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Cofield was also named to the All-Tournament after hitting 55.3% of his field goals (21-38) and combining for 49 points over the course of three games. Jerrial Dawson finished the night with nine points and had a pair of crucial three point buckets in the second half.

The Blazers dominated the glass, out-rebounding Martin Methodist 48-30. Belhaven shot at a 43.5% clip from the field (27-62), with 24 of the 74 points recorded in the paint.

The Redhawks were guided by Darius Woods and his 17 points followed by Brandon Hunter with 15 points and LaMarcus Mosley with 14 points. Hunter and John Taylor shared the team lead in rebounds with six. As a team, Martin Methodist connected on 31.6% of their field goals (18-57).

The 2014 NAIA Division I National Championships will be held March 19th-25th at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. The final NAIA Top 25 Coaches' Poll will be announced on March 12th with the seeding and bracket to be released shortly thereafter. Belhaven will be looking for its first tournament win since 1972 when this year's tournament tips off.