1997 Division III men's basketball tournament

Illinois Wesleyan, led by Division III's winningest active head coach Dennie Bridges, won its first ever NCAA Men's Basketball Championship with an 89-86 victory over Nebraska Wesleyan. Illinois Wesleyan jumped out to a 49-30 halftime lead, holding as much as a 23-point cushion during the first half of play. Nebraska Wesleyan countered with a 56-point second half, but was never able to take the lead during the second frame. Illinois Wesleyan star Bryan Crabtree, who poured in 28 including 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 10-of-11 at the line, led the Titans to victory. Titans freshman point guard Korey Coon also contributed 17 points while controlling the flow of the game, playing 39 minutes and not committing a turnover. The Titans ended up hitting 52.7 percent from the field for the game, including 82.1 from the charity stripe. Nebraska Wesleyan was led by Mitch Moseser, who helped the Plainsmen come back in the second half, burying 7-of-9 three-point shots in the second stanza, but it wasn't enough.

Watch the full video below, then scroll down for the full tournament results:

Championship
Illinois Wesleyan 89, Nebraska Wesleyan 86
(at Salem, Va., att. 3,013) 

All-Tournament Team
Bryan Crabtree, Illinois Wesleyan (Most Outstanding Player)
Korey Coon, Illinois Wesleyan
Mitch Mosser, Nebraska Wesleyan
Damien Hunter, Alvernia
Michael Nogelo, Williams

Third-place game
Williams 78, Alvernia 77

National semifinals
Nebraska Wesleyan 101, Williams 90
Illinois Wesleyan 85, Alvernia 82

Sectional finals
Alvernia 89, Salisbury State 84
Nebraska Wesleyan 69, UW-Stevens Point 66
Illinois Wesleyan 95, Methodist 63
Williams 71, Rowan 62

Sectional semifinals
Salisbury State 78, Brockport State 77
Alvernia 77, Rochester Institute of Technology 71
Nebraska Wesleyan 92, Hope 75
UW-Stevens Point 68, Mount Union 67 (OT)
Methodist 74, Chicago 70
Illinois Wesleyan 87, Bridgewater (Va.) 60
Rowan 82, Salem State 72
Williams 85, Richard Stockton 61

Second round
Richard Stockton 64, William Paterson 60
Williams 83, Amherst 63
Salisbury State 77, Widener 65
Brockport State 73, St. John Fisher 68
Alvernia 60, Goucher 55
Rochester Institute of Technology 111, Buffalo State 106 (2 OT)
Hope 67, Wooster 56
Nebraska Wesleyan 61, Gustavus Adolphus 59
Mount Union 73, Wittenberg 65
UW-Stevens Point 46, UW-Platteville 43
Methodist 72, Christopher Newport 67
Chicago 78, Wabash 70
Bridgewater (Va.) 65, Sewanee 62
Illinois Wesleyan 54, Rose-Hulman 53
Rowan 56, New York University 53
Salem State 83, Tufts 63

First Round
Widener 70, Dickinson 62
Salisbury State 101, Wilkes 90
Brockport State 64, St. Lawrence 63
St. John Fisher 79, Cortland State 70
Alvernia 69, Lebanon Valley 55
Goucher 67, Cabrini 60
Buffalo State 70, Hamilton 66
Rochester Institute of Technology 65, Rochester 64
Hope 69, Denison 66
Wooster 84, Ohio Northern 58
Gustavus Adolphus 82, UW-Whitewater 67
Nebraska Wesleyan 93, Buena Vista 54
Wittenberg 83, John Carroll 69
Mount Union 77, Alfred 69
UW-Stevens Point 68, Pomona-Pitzer 58
UW-Platteville 51, UW-Oshkosh 43
Christopher Newport 79, Hampden-Sydney 74
Methodist 67, Roanoke 63
Chicago 59, Benedictine 52
Wabash 69, Lawrence 63
Sewanee 68, Rust 61
Bridgewater (Va.) 64, Maryville (Tenn.) 62
Rose-Hulman 86, Washington U. 69
Illinois Wesleyan 105, Maryville (Mo.) 66
Rowan 72, Mt. St. Vincent 52
New York University 94, Jersey City State 84
Tufts 65, Massachusetts-Dartmouth 63
Salem State 69, Springfield 61
William Paterson 51, Merchant Marine 43
Richard Stockton 78, York (N.Y.) 71
Amherst 83, Colby 60
Williams 76, Wentworth Tech 57

Jersey City State is now known as New Jersey City U.