It's been an historic season for the Shawnee State men's basketball team in almost every way imaginable.

So it's only fitting that DeLano Thomas and his staff will have the opportunity to finish off the season in a truely legendary manner.

Donoven Carlisle, James Jones, Kobie Johnson and EJ Onu led Shawnee State by scoring in double-figures, with Carlisle (19 points) posting a season-high and Jones (17 points, 11 rebounds) adding in a double-double to help lead the Bears to Tuesday evening's NAIA National Championship Game with a 82-77 victory over St. Francis (Ind.) in a Monday evening NAIA National Semifinal at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.

Shawnee State (30-2), despite losing the rebounding battle by four (47-43), again found a way to win behind its balanced scoring and unselfish team play. The Bears posted 21 assists on their 31 made baskets Monday evening, leading to a 31-of-67 mark from the field (46.3 percent) as a group.

Shawnee State was down eight (32-24) in the first half and seven, twice (55-48 and 58-51) but never flinched in the eyes of adversity, rallying back every time with one crucial play after another in the five-point win.

Carlisle heads scoring, bench energy

Throughout Monday evening's contest, the bench, in particular, showcased excellent energy all game long.

Donoven Carlisle, in particular, was on point throughout the contest as the senior picked a great time to have his best scoring output of the season.

From the time that Carlisle checked into the game with 15:24 to play in the opening half, the senior made an immediate impact as the 6-8 forward from Indianapolis, Ind. scored six straight points as part of an 11-0 run that helped the Bears take a 17-11 advantage with 13:56 to play in the first half.

In the second 20-minute stanza, Carlisle struck again.

With the Bears trailing by a 55-48 count with 12:38 to go, the crafty four-man scored seven points in an 11-3 run that helped put Shawnee State back in front by a 59-58 tally with 8:16 to play. Carlisle then scored twice inside over the game's final two-and-a-half minutes to help keep the Bears ahead for good with Shawnee State opening up its lead to a 77-72 count after Carlisle's pair of buckets.

For the contest, Carlisle notched his 19 points and eight rebounds on outstanding efficiency, shooting 8-of-10 from the field in the affair.

Jones continues outstanding tournament tear

Simply excellent at every level, Shawnee State senior James Jones was his usual self scoring the basketball. However, in Monday evening's national semifinal, Jones was also excellent as a facilitator.

Enjoying an efficient first half with eight points on 4-of-7 from the floor, Jones set up his teammates for easy finishes as well as the senior from Chicago, Ill. finished with six assists in the opening half of play and five in the second half of competition en route to 11 overall. Jones also added in seven rebounds to boot en route to yet another complete floor game.

For the tournament, Jones is averaging 21.7 points, six rebounds and 5.3 assists per outing.

Johnson catches fire from deep

Playing into a consistent flow and within the confines of the offense, Shawnee State senior guard Kobie Johnson was outstanding

Overall, Johnson posted six points in both halves with timely treys, going 4-of-7 from beyond the arc to lead the Bears from downtown -- with none of them bigger than his last, a bomb from dead-on with 5:01 to go that allowed Shawnee State to take a 68-66 lead while also keeping St. Francis from taking a lead over the remainder of the game in the process. The senior from Middletown added in two free throws late to help seal the deal.

EJ dominating all day

With yet another outstanding effort defensively, Shawnee State's EJ Onu continued providing the goods defensively throughout.

Continuing to impact the game at a level akin to some of America's greatest defensive talents, Onu finished with 10 points, nine blocks and five rebounds to profoundly impact the affair at all levels. The senior posted five of his nine blocks in the opening half.

According to Small College Basketball, Onu is averaging 14.6 points, 9.3 blocks and nine rebounds per game for the tournament.

Additional/UP NEXT

With the win, Shawnee State will advance to play either Lewis-Clark State, Idaho (21-1) in Tuesday evening's NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship Game -- which will start at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN 3, with the link listed here.

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