The Eastern College Eagles outlasted gritty Philadelphia Pharmacy, 76-71, in the finals of the District 19 NAIA tournament last night at Eastern to earn a bid to the NAIA Nationals which begin March 16 at Kemper Arena in Kansas City.

For Pharmacy, it was the fourth straight loss in the district finals. For Eastern it is the first win its first try in the finals.

"The monkey is off my back." said
Eastern coach Nate Ware as his players celebrated around him Last year. the Eagles played in the finals of the National Christian College Athletic Association tournament.
But this season, Ware hod a nucleus of four seniors that he felt Could withstand a better brand of competition. So Ware committed to the NAIA tournament and beefed up the schedule. "That was taking a chance," said Ware, a second-year coach. It could have backfired."

But the move paid off. The Eagles will take a 30-5 record to Kansas City, and the four seniors have been outstanding. Arnold Johnson, Mike McCarron and Barry Craver start, and Sam Boone is the first man off the bench.

Last night. Johnson, a 6-foot, 6inch forward out of Lincoln High. led the way with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Craver, another 6-6 forward from Charlotte, N.C. added 10 points, and talented point guard  McCarron, out of North Catholic, chipped in with 10 points and nine assists. Boone, from Washington, D.C., contributed, four points and three blocked shots off the bench.
"Their seniors are just very talented," said Pharmacy coach Bob Morgan. "We just couldn't keep up."

For all intents and purposes, Eastern broke the game open early in the second half.

The Eagles held a 39-31 halftime advantage, but after Pharmacy's George Kinsler opened the second half with a free throw, Eastern went on a 15-4 tear that gave it a 54-36 lead with 14 minutes, 36 seconds left in the game.

They got the game at a tempo they wanted," said Morgan.
"Coach told us at halftime to pick up the tempo," said McCarron, came out in the second half and tried to run a little more."

Pharmacy (24-6) certainly didn't cave in. Morgan didn't panic. Instead, he sent players in waves, and the Blue Devils remained patient.

When freshman forward Jeff Misenko dropped in a three-pointer with 39 seconds left, Pharmacy trailed by only 75-71.

But the Devils were forced to foul, and when Eastern junior Keith Wilkerson, who finished with 14 points, coolly hit two free throws with 25 seconds remaining, the Eagles were on their way to Kansas City.

Diane Pucin Philadelphia Inquirer