Head coach John Giannini guided his Rowan squad to its first ever NCAA Division III title as the Profs downed the Hope College Flying Dutchmen, 100-83. Rowan (28-4) had not appeared in the championship game since 1975 when it was defeated by LeMoyne-Owen 57-54.
Rowan's explosive offense set tournament records in three categories: most points in a six-game series (594), most field goals in a six-game series (206), and most assists in a six-game series (122). The Profs as a team shot 52% from the floor and had five players score in double figures in the title game.
Rowan was led by Most Outstanding Player Terrence Stewart and All-Tournament guard Antwan Dasher. Stewart drained four of six three pointers and netted 17 points, while Dasher scored a team-high 19, including a perfect 9-of-9 from the line. The Profs also outrebounded the Flying Dutchmen 40 to 27.
Hope was led by Joel Holstege who was on fire for the Flying Dutchmen, pouring in a game high 39 points. Holstege fouled out of the game after nailing seven treys and connecting on 13-of-19 from the floor. Center Duane Bosma was a force inside scoring 28 points, blocking two shots and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds for Hope.
Championship
Rowan 100, Hope 93
(at Salem, Va., att. 3,000)
All-Tournament Team
Terrence Stewart, Rowan (Most Outstanding Player)
Antwan Dasher, Rowan
Joel Holstege, Hope
Duana Bosma, Hope
Chris Simich, Illinois Wesleyan
Third-Place Game
Illinois Wesleyan 89, Franklin & Marshall 57
National Semifinals
Hope 76, Franklin & Marshall 57
Rowan 79, Illinois Wesleyan 77
Sectional Championships
Franklin & Marshall 107, Wilkes 70
Hope 69, Wittenberg 60
Rowan 98, Richard Stockton 70
Illinois Wesleyan 73, Washington (Mo.) 61
Sectional Semifinals
Wilkes 64, Buffalo St. 59
Franklin & Marshall 74, Rensselaer 58
Hope 88, UW-Whitewater 66
Wittenberg 76, Gustavus Adolphus 68
Rowan 85, Williams 77
Richard Stockton 95, Anna Maria 88
Washington (Mo.) 87, Christopher Newport 71
Illinois Wesleyan 116, Roanoke 88
Second Round
Buffalo St. 71, Geneseo St. 61
Wilkes 96, Cabrini 91 (OT)
Rensselaer 78, St. Lawrence 70
Franklin & Marshall 72, Lycoming 61
UW-Whitewater 63, Claremont Mudd-Scripps 62
Hope 80, John Carroll 61
Gustavus Adolphus 61, UW-Oshkosh 60 (2 OT)
Wittenberg 65, Capital 60
Williams 91, Bowdoin 64
Rowan 102, Jersey City St. 83
Anna Maria 74, Salem St. 67
Richard Stockton 81, New York U. 77 (OT)
Washington (Mo.) 93, Wheaton (Ill.) 75
Christopher Newport 73, Millsaps 69
Illinois Wesleyan 73, Hanover 67
Roanoke 80, Hendrix 64
First Round
Geneseo St. 73, Rochester Tech 51
Buffalo St. 74, St. John Fisher 65
Wilkes 87, Allentown 72
Cabrini 85, Catholic 65
St. Lawrence 85, Hamilton 78
Rensselaer 68, Hartwick 55
Lycoming 103, Gettysburg 75
Franklin & Marshall 118, Salisbury St. 69
UW-Whitewater 85, UW-Platteville 77
Claremont Mudd-Scripps 70, Upper Iowa 58
Hope 65, Kalamazoo 62
John Carroll 86, Wooster 72
UW-Oshkosh 79, Simpson 74
Gustavus Adolphus 72, Concordia-Moorhead 61
Capital 68, Ohio Northern 57
Wittenberg 70, Baldwin-Wallace 61
Williams 78, Plymouth St. 62
Bowdoin 62, Springfield 56
Rowan 130, York (N.Y.) 66
Jersey City St. 73, Staten Island 63
Anna Maria 111, Babson 90
Salem St. 76, Western Conn. St. 60
New York U. 105, N.J. Inst. of Tech. 88
Richard Stockton 80, Mt. St. Vincent 54
Wheaton (Ill.) 131, Grinnell 117
Washington (Mo.) 76, Rose-Hulman 74
Christopher Newport 66, Randolph-Macon 57
Millsaps 83, Bridgewater (Va.) 72
Hanover 85, Fontbonne 43
Illinois Wesleyan 77, Ripon 66
Hendrix 97, Stillman 85
Roanoke 128, Shenandoah 110
Jersey City State is now known as New Jersey City U.