2025 NJCAA D1 Men's Basketball Final
#7 Trinity Valley Community College (TX) Cardinals beat #17 Connors State College (OK) Cowboys 69-61
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Contact: greg@loql.ai
Article and photos by Dale Grosbach
An Outstanding Championship Match-up
In the 2025 Credit Union 1 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Finals, the #7 seed, Trinity Valley Community College (TX) Cardinals, emerged victorious over the #17 seed, Connors State College (OK) Cowboys, with a final score of 69-61.
The game featured two evenly matched teams, as reflected in the halftime score of 32-32. In the second half the Cardinals led by as much as twelve, with the Cowboys closing the gap to within four points with just 1:15 remaining. However, the Cardinals secured the victory by shooting 12 of 14 from the free-throw line in the final five minutes, with freshman forward #6 Zati Loubaki going 5 of 6 during that critical stretch.
Trinity Valley's winning effort was led by Loubaki and sophomore guard #10 Garret Nuckolls, who each scored 17 points and had three and five rebounds, respectively. Additionally, sophomore forward #22 Cameron Williams led the team with nine rebounds.
For Connors State, standout performances came from freshman guard #10 Kevin Stubblefield Jr., who scored 20 points and grabbed three rebounds, freshman guard #14 DJ Dormu, who contributed 16 points and five rebounds, and sophomore forward #32 Edwin Daniel, who achieved a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Both teams were well represented on the Tournament Awards. Trinity Valley's freshman forward Zati Loubaki was named the William French Most Valuable Player for the Tournament. Loubaki scored 61 points for the tournament, shooting 57.14% from the field and 75% from the free-throw line.
Connors State's freshman guard DJ Dormu won the Bud Obee Outstanding Small Player Award.
The All-Tournament team included Trinity Valley players Garrett Nuckolls and sophomore guard #2 Tyler Smith, while DJ Dormu and Edwin Daniel represented Connors State. Trinity Valley Head Coach Greg Heiar was honored as Coach of the Tournament.
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