The sophomore, who is a fan favorite at the Sports Arena because of his shooting and hustle, hit seven of his final 11 shots after missing his first four.

Palmer said he could talk about his teammate "all day."

"Brian Green, he's the best shooter in the nation," he said. "I trust him shooting the ball and I know our team trusts him shooting the ball more than anybody else on the team."

SLCC coach Norm Parrish chimed in on the claim.

"He's only the second-best shooter in our gym," he said. "I can outshoot him."

COACHING PIPELINE: SLCC's Parrish, Indian Hills' Jeff Kidder and Seward County's Bryan Zollinger all made the NJCAA quarterfinals. But for years, their teams battled each other in the Scenic West Athletic Conference.

Parrish has been with the Bruins for 17 seasons, Zollinger was at the College of Eastern Utah for 10 years before heading to Liberal, Kan., to coach the Saints in 2007. Kidder was with Dixie State before it began the transition toward NCAA Division II status, coaching eight years in St. George and guiding the Rebels to the 2002 national championship.

South Plains (Texas) College beat Zollinger's Saints 77-65 in the late semifinal Friday night to earn a spot in the finals.

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E-mail: jody@desnews.com