[Box score]

Coming into the game as the underdog, Cal State Dominguez Hills battled with Nova Southeastern and had a shot at the buzzer to take down the top-seed but fell one point short (74-73) in the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball national championship game. (Mar. 29)
 
Jeremy Dent-Smith had another outstanding game and was named to the NCAA all-tournament team. The All-American guard registered a double-double with 27 points and 10 rebounds to conclude the Elite Eight, with averages of 26.3 points per game and 8.0 rebounds per game. He shot 57.5 percent from the field (27-of-47) and 84.2 percent at the free throw line (16-of-19).
 
David Cheatom joined Dent-Smith on the NCAA All-Tournament team after scoring 15 more points and grabbing four rebounds in the championship. At the Elite Eight, Cheatom scored 15 points per game, grabbed 5.9 rebounds per game and was 13-of-15 at the free throw line.
 
As they have done in all three games at the Elite Eight, the Toros battled back against a higher-seated opponent to take the lead late in the second half. CSUDH was up 42-38 at halftime but saw their lead slip away with a 15-2 run by the Sharks (60-52).
 
The Toros showed the resiliency they had all week, using a 10-2 run capped off by a layup by Jeremy Dent-Smith to knot the game at 62-62. Baskets were traded over the next four minutes until Dent-Smith got a long rebound for a runout, resulting in a layup and a foul. He made the and-1 shot to put CSUDH up 71-68 with 2:24 remaining.
 
Another minute would pass with both teams coming up empty on offense before NSU's Ryker Cisarik would draw a foul on Dent-Smith during a rebound attempt, sending Cisarik to the line and Dent-Smith to the bench permanently with his ffith foul with 1:19 left.
 
The Toros would get a look from the corner on their possession, but the shot found the rim, and the Sharks' Dallas Graziani gave his team the lead with a pair of free throws (72-71).
 
David Cheatom answered for CSUDH on its next possession with a fall-away jumper in the lane to put the Toros back in front wth 24 seconds remaining (73-72). Graziani got the ball and sprinted up the court, needing a field goal to take the lead. He found the national player of the year, MJ Iraldi, who went hard to the hoop on a drive. Hilstock jumped in front of him to draw a foul. At first, it appeared to be a charge, but Hilstock's heel was determined to be in the restricted area, resulting in a shooting foul. Iraldi would make both free throws to put NSU in front 73-72.
 
The Toros would run a final play for Cheatom with the chance to win the game. He got the ball at the top of the key and beat his man off the dribble to get in the lane. Cheatom avoided the help defender by drifting to the right. He had a small window of space, but he managed to get the ball of the glass. At first it looked like the ball would find the net, but it was just a little too hard, and came off the front of the rim. The ball was tipped around as time expired.
 
Iraldi led Nova Southeastern with 27 points and nine rebounds. Tyler Eberhart had 14 and Graziani added 13.
 
Cal State Dominguez Hills faced the top 3 seeds in the Elite Eight in three consecutive rounds. NSU came into the game averaging 102.5 ppg on the season and was held nearly 30 points below their season average. The three teams CSUDH faced were averaging 96.2 ppg, and the Toros limited them to 80.3 ppg. The Toros held their opponents to only 21.3 percent from 3-point range (13-of-61) and never allowed more than five in a game.
 
The 30 wins are a CSUDH program record (30-6), and this is the first time the Toros have ever earned a win at the Elite Eight. They are the first team to represent the CCAA in the NCAA Championship since Cal Poly Pomona in 2010.