SAN DIEGO—Making their debut in March Madness, the University of Cal Baptist had seemingly nothing to prove going up against the juggernaut, the Kansas Jayhawks. As a No.13 seed, no one would have blamed them for a lopsided loss. The CBU Lancers led by Dominique Daniel’s Jr. made a dramatic second half comeback. Eventually losing to No. 4 seed Kansas, 68-60 at the Viejas Arena in San Diego on March 20.
Cal Baptist’s Dominique Daniels Jr., who finished with 25 points, willed the Lancers all the way back to 66-60 after KU had led by as many as 26, but CBU ran out of time.
The Jayhawks led 48-22 just four minutes into the second half but the No. 13-seeded Lancers, backed by a very loud student section, never gave up as the Jayhawks did not score for most of the last six minutes. CBU played smothering defense and went on an 18-2 run as it flirted with wearing Cinderella Slippers.
Kansas superstar, Darryn Peterson, who is the rumored to be the first pick in the 2026 NBA Draft was sensational. Peterson made four 3-pointers scoring 28 points as the Jayhawks survived this one.
Cal Baptist will make the 100-mile bus ride back to Riverside having experienced the NCAA Tournament for the first time after winning the final Western Athletic Conference Tournament.
“We essentially just ran out of time,” said Lancers coach Rick Croy. “But the guys showed so much heart. That was a true March Madness game.
“We’re grateful for the competition,” he added. “We knew Kansas was going to be ready. Obviously, we would have loved to play better in the first half. But for these guys, again, to show what they’re all about, it was pretty amazing.”
Daniels inspiring performance is one of the best, thrilling aspects of the NCAA Tournament. An undersized guard from a school that’s not nationally recognized or appreciated, attempting to slay the giant dragon, or Jayhawk in this case.
It transcends sports. His performance motivated not only the rabid CBU Lancer student section, but it also galvanized millions of people across the nation who overcome the same obstacles.
Daniels, averaging 23.2 points per game across 32 appearances, was good for the fifth-highest scoring mark in the country.
Daniels’ story makes him almost too good to be true to be a March Madness legend. A native of Compton, California, he began his collegiate career at a local JUCO before joining the Lancers.
During his three-year career in Riverside, Daniels has been an All-WAC selection in every season and took home the WAC Player of the Year award earlier this month. He hit a game-winning 3-point shot in the conference tournament championship and has now led the school to its first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament appearance.
The UCLA Bruins also qualified as did the Woman’s squad. Cal Baptist had both teams qualify, and in an ironic twist the girls from Cal Baptist seeded No. 16 faced the No. 1 seeded UCLA Bruins. UCLA prevailed 96-43. The Bruins held Cal Baptist to just 9 points in the second half as they continued in their quest for a National Championship.
The UCLA men beat the University of Central Florida in the first round but fell to the No. 2 seeded Connecticut Huskies 73-57. The University of Southern California ladies also lost in the second round to the other USC- the University of South Carolina 101-61. Eclipsing the 100-point mark is extremely rare in men or woman’s college basketball and is a testament to how great South Carolina is.
A thrilling, one shining moment for so many local student athletes showed why so many love March Madness.
