KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Pittsburg State University men's basketball team has advanced to the finals of the 2015 MIAA Championships in Kansas City, Mo. The fifth-seeded Gorillas will meet No. 3 seed Missouri Southern State University at 1 p.m. (CDT) Sunday (Mar. 8) at Municipal Auditorium.

Pitt State defeated top-seeded Northwest Missouri State University, 65-58, in semifinal action Saturday (Mar. 7). Missouri Southern advanced to the tournament finals with a 78-71 victory over No. 2 seed University of Central Missouri.

On Television
The MIAA Championships Finals will be televised live on the MIAA Network. Locally, Pitt State fans can see the game on Cox Cable channel 22. Additionally, live web stream and live statistics links are available by following the Tournament Central link at right. Gorilla fans also can listen to the game online on a live audio stream at kkowradio.com.

The Records
Pitt State brings a 19-11 overall record into the Finals of the MIAA Championships.  The Gorillas posted a 12-7 mark in MIAA play during the regular season, finishing in a five-way tie for third place in the conference standings.

The Gorillas shared the lead in the MIAA standings with three games to go in the regular season schedule, but Pitt State dropped all three of those contests – including a 66-63 home loss to MSSU on Feb. 21 – to slip from contention for the regular season crown.

Southern brings a 20-10 record into Sunday's action. The Lions also posted a 12-7 mark in MIAA play, closing out the regular season with three straight wins. MSSU enters the finals on a season-best five-game winning streak.

Gorillas, Lions in the MIAA Championships
Pitt State is making its 19th appearance in the MIAA Championships. The Gorillas have compiled a 17-18 (.486) record in 35 MIAA Tournament games and reached the Finals of the tournament four times.

Pitt State has compiled a 7-8 (.467) record in MIAA Tournament games played at Municipal Auditorium.

Southern is making 22nd appearance in the MIAA Championships. The Lions, the defending tournament champions, have posted a 20-17 (.541) record in 37 MIAA Tournament games and reached the Finals of the tournament six times, claiming three tournament titles.

Head Coach Kevin Muff
Pittsburg State's Kevin Muff is in his fifth season leading the Gorillas. Muff (Kansas State, '86) became the Gorillas' 14th all-time head coach on Apr. 5, 2010, after spending 12 seasons at Cloud County Community College, where he helped the Thunderbirds to an average of 21 wins in each of the last five seasons.

He has a 75-66 (.532) record in his tenure with the Gorillas.

Muff was named the MIAA Co-Coach of the Year on Mar. 2 after leading the Gorillas to a 16-11 regular season record and a tie for third-place in the MIAA standings. Pitt State was picked to finish 10th in the 14-team league in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll after posting an 8-18 (4-15 MIAA) mark a year ago.

Series History
Pitt State and MSSU will meet for the 95th time Saturday in a series that dates all the way back to the 1969 season – MSSU's first year as a four-year college.  The Lions hold a slight 50-44 edge in the series, including four straight wins.

This will be just the second neutral site match-up between the schools – the last coming on Mar. 4, 2005, in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Championships at Municipal Auditorium.  The Lions claimed a 63-61 victory that day.

Last Time Out (Feb. 21): MSSU rallied from seven points down with 6:12 to play in the game to claim a 66-63 victory over Pitt Stat before a racaus crowd of 2,611 fans at John Lance Arena.
Dakota Jones' jumper gave Pitt State a 58-51 lead with 6:12 to play, but MSSU scored the next seven points to tie the game at 58-58 on Cameron Cornelius' free throw with 4:08 to go. The Gorillas went 0-for-4 from the field and 5-for-14 from the free throw line in the game's final six minutes to allow the Lions' rally.

Pitt State had a chance to tie the game at 64-64 with 21 seconds to play but Devon Branch was called for a charge while making the game-tieing basket. Charlie Brown missed two free throws with 11.9 seconds remaining to keep the game at 64-62. Branch then had a chance to knot the score with five seconds to play, but he missed the second of two free throws and Brown sealed the win with two free throws with four seconds to go.

Josiah Gustafson scored a game-high 22 points for the Gorillas, but he exited the game with an injury with 5:00 remaining. Branch finished with 13 points, while Gregory added 11 points and seven rebounds.

MSSU got 17 points from Cornelius and 16 more from Taevaunn Prince.

Scouting the Gorillas
Pitt State has three players scoring in double figures on the season: sophomore guard Josiah Gustafson (15.7 ppg), senior guard Devon Branch (14.3 ppg) and junior guard Trey Starks (11.7 ppg).

Gustafson (6-6, 190) is shooting 45.7 percent from the field (150 of 328), including 46 of 108 (.426) from 3-point range. The Omaha, Neb., native also has made 124 of 148 (.838) free throw attempts – ranking fourth in the MIAA in free throw percentage. Gustafson, who ranks sixth in the MIAA in scoring, has scored 20 or more points 10 times this season.

Branch (6-6, 180) is shooting 53.0 percent from the floor. The Aberdeen, Md., native also is contributing 3.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Starks (6-0, 190) made his Pitt State debut against Central Oklahoma on Feb. 7.  The Springfield, Mo., native scored 13 points in his debut vs. UCO and added a season-high 18 points vs. Northeastern State on Feb. 18. He is shooting 54.4 percent from the field (31 of 57), including a 63.4 percent clip (26 of 41) from inside the 3-point line.

Junior forward Lamine Dieng (6-8, 240) has averaged 8.1 points and a team-leading 4.5 rebounds in 24 games played. The Thies, Segegal native redshirted in 2013-14 and missed the Gorillas' first four games this season. Dieng has missed three of Pitt State's last 11 games due to injury and averaged jus 14.3 minutes of action in the eight games he's played.

Freshman guard Dakota Jones (5-10, 165) contributes 7.4 points per game, while sophomore forward Trevor Gregory (6-7, 235) chips in with 6.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Junior guard Javis Flynn (5-10, 170) adds 6.2 points and a team-leading 5.2 assists and 2.3 steals per game.  Flynn dished out a PSU record 12 assists in the Gorillas' 59-58 win over Emporia State on Jan. 14. He leads the MIAA in assists and steals.

As a team, Pitt State has averaged 70.9 points per game, shooting 48.3 percent from the floor (718 of 1488), 38.3 percent from 3-point range (152 of 397) and 73.2 percent from the free throw line (539 of 736).

The Gorillas have generated 17.9 points per game from the free throw line.

Pitt State's opposition has averaged 65.8 points per game and shot 44.2 percent from the field (650 of 1469).

All-MIAA Gorillas
Three Pitt State players – sophomore guard Josiah Gustafson, senior guard Devon Branch and junior guard Javis Flynn — received All-MIAA recognition following a vote of the conference coaches.

Gustafson received first-team All-MIAA honors, while Branch garnered third-team All-MIAA recognition for a second straight year.  Flynn was named to the five-man MIAA All-Defensive Team.

Gustafson is the first Pitt State player to earn first-team All-MIAA honors since the 2007-08 season (Cory Abercrombie).

PSU Record Watch
Junior guard Javis Flynn currently ranks fourth all-time at PSU in single-season assists with 156.  He needs three more helpers to pass Oscar Gonzalez (158, 1998) for third place on the list.  Tony McCoy (1985) is second on the list with 160.

Flynn also ranks third all-time in single-season steals (69).  Cedric Brooks, who ranks second, snared 75 steals in 2003.

Sophomore guard Josiah Gustafson has scored 470 points on the season. He needs eight more points to break into PSU's top 20 list for single-season scoring. Dan Stanley, who ranks 20th on the list, scored 478 points in 2001.

Pitt State Probable Starters
    F    24    Trevor Gregory, 6-7, 235, So., Lee's Summit, Mo.
    F    33    Connor Kjer, 6-6, 218, Sr., La Habra, Calif.
    G    3    Javis Flynn, 5-10, 170, Jr., Watonga, Okla.
    G    4    Josiah Gustafson, 6-6, 190, So., Omaha, Neb.
    G    5    Devon Branch, 6-6, 180, Sr., Aberdeen, Md.