Jacob Holman scored 21 points and made five 3-point shots to lead North Texas to a 76-72 over against Arkansas State in a Sun Belt tournament semifinal on Monday night.
Alzee Williams added 12 points, Brandan Walton and Tony Mitchell 11 each and Roger Franklin 10 for the fifth-seeded Mean Green (18-13), who will play No. 7 seed Western Kentucky in the championship game on Tuesday. It is the team's third straight trip to the finals, and the fourth in six years.
Trey Finn had 21 points and made five 3-pointers for the ninth-seeded Red Wolves (14-20). Marcus Hooten had 18 points and Malcoln Kirkland 14 points and 10 rebounds.
In a game with nine ties and 10 lead changes, the largest second-half cushion for either team was six points. Walton's driving layup gave North Texas the lead for good, 68-67, with 1:51 remaining, and the Mean Green went 8 of 10 from the free-throw line down the stretch.
North Texas shot 58.7 percent (27 of 46) and 61.5 percent (8 of 13) from 3-point range. Both figures are season highs.
