The Tigers scored the first points of the game with a Cedric Henderson basket at the 19:08 mark, but Cumberlands quickly gained the lead, 5-2, on a 3 by Benito Santiago, Jr. The Patriots never let up, stretching the lead to double figures, 24-14, and taking a 42-25 lead into halftime. The margin grew to as many as 19 in the second half, 53-34. Campbellsville was never able to close the gap.

Campbellsville (20-10, 8-8 MSC) entered the day with the chance to finish as high as No. 3 in the MSC with a win or fall to sixth in the standings with a loss. With the loss, CU will enter the Mid-South Conference Tournament next week as the No. 6 seed and will meet St. Catharine College in the MSC quarterfinals at 8 p.m. ET at the Frankfort Convention Center in Frankfort, Ky.

"We couldn't get over the hump," said Keith Adkins, CU head coach. "Let's face it. We didn't deserve it. We didn't play well enough this week and obviously didn't prepare well enough. When you have a goal, you can't wait around for someone to give it to you. You have to deserve it, and we didn't deserve it."

In the second half of the game Saturday, Campbellsville used a 15-6 run after Cumberlands' largest lead to cut the margin within 10 points, 59-49, with three minues left on a 3-pointer by Jordan Myers. However, Cumberlands stretched its lead in the final minutes as Tiger players began to foul out.

"It was a valiant effort, but when you burry yourself, it's hard to dig out of it," Adkins said. "We made too many mistakes today to be successful."

The Mid-South Conference will begin Monday, Feb. 27, with a first round game between Rio Grande and Shawnee State. The winner will join the other seven teams in Frankfort, March 2-4. Seeding for the tournament is as follows: No. 1 Lindsey Wilson College, No. 2, Georgetown College, No. 3 St. Catharine College, No. 4 University of Pikeville, No. 5 University of the Cumberlands, No. 6 Campbellsville, No. 7 University of Virginia's College at Wise, No. 8 Shawnee State, No. 9 Rio Grande.

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