It would be hard to believe the drama decreases the futher a team goes in a tournament, but that’s exactly what happened to the William Penn men’s basketball team on Monday.

After their wild last-second victory to reach the NAIA Division II semifinals, the Statesmen used a big second half to cruise past Grace (Ind.) for a 79-58 victory and berth in the national championship game.

The top-seeded and 34-1 Statesmen, coached by Newton nativer John Henry, will face the No. 2-seeded Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) for the title at 8:05 p.m. tonight in Point Lookout, Mo. The game will be broadcast on the CBS Sports Network.