Tim Folan was the most outstanding player of the final 90 seconds as he scored five of the last six points, got an offensive rebound off a missed free throw, hit the game-winning free throws and stole a three-quarters court pass as Williams defeated Gustavus Adolphus 67-65. It is the first national championship for the Northeast Region and the first for Williams in three trips to Salem. Williams (31-1) took its first lead with 48 seconds remaining, battling back from an eight-point second-half deficit and finishing the game on a 12-2 run. Folan sparked the run with a pair of free throws and a fast-break layup to cut the Gusties' lead to 63-60. Benjamin Coffin hit one of two foul shots to make it a one point game, then Folan added a three-pointer from the the near side to give Williams a 64-63 lead. Derek Nelson's layup gave Gustavus (26-7) a 65-64 lead, but Coffin answered with one free throw to tie the game with 4.6 seconds left, then Folan rebounded Coffin's miss and drew a touch foul, hitting both free throws. Folan clinched the game by stealing the long inbounds pass and throwing it to the ceiling, and was mobbed on the baseline in celebration.

2003 Tournament Coverage    Final Four recap    Features: Wooster    Hampden-Sydney    Tournament preview           Tournament projection

Championship
Williams 67, Gustavus Adolphus 65

at Salem, Va.

Audio: The final play of the game (Pat Coleman and Pat Cummings)

 

All-Tournament Team
Benjamin Coffin, Williams (Most Outstanding Player)
Michael Crotty, Williams
Doug Espenson, Gustavus Adolphus
Bryan Nelson, Wooster
Jeff Monroe, Hampden-Sydney

Third-Place Game
Wooster 78, Hampden-Sydney 74

National Semifinals
Williams 74, Wooster 72 (OT)
Gustavus Adolphus 79, Hampden-Sydney 68

First Round	Second Round	Sectionals at Randolph-Macon
at 10 Alvernia 58 8 Mary Washington 53	1 Randolph-Macon 72 10 Alvernia 69 (OT)	1 Randolph-Macon 47 6 UW-Oshkosh 53	6 UW-Oshkosh 63 3 Hampden-Sydney 68
at 5 UW-Oshkosh 78 12 Mil.Engineering 56	4 Hope 77 5 UW-Oshkosh 84
at 6 Chris. Newport 61 9 Savannah A&D 66	3 Hampden-Sydney 56 9 Savannah A&D 54	3 Hampden-Sydney 76 7 Ill. Wesleyan 68
at 7 Illinois Wesleyan 79 11 Blackburn 59	2 Washington U. 73 7 Illinois Wesleyan 85
First Round	Second Round	Sectionals at Buena Vista
at 5 Buena Vista 96 12 Illinois College 66	3 Rockford 72 5 Buena Vista 84	5 Buena Vista 62 2 Occidental 67	2 Occidental 56 9 Gustavus 74
at 6 Trinity (Texas) 66 11 Aurora 67	2 Occidental 80 11 Aurora 61
at 9 Gust. Adolphus 65 7 Whitworth 55	4 UW-Stevens Pt. 62 9 Gust. Adolphus 75	9 Gustavus 79 1 Hanover 66
at 8 Maryville (Tenn.) 70 10 Mississippi College 58	1 Hanover 68 8 Maryville (Tenn.) 64
First Round	Second Round	Sectionals at Williams
at 8 Salem State 81 9 St. Joseph's (Maine) 76	1 Williams 94 8 Salem State 67	1 Williams 76 5 Hamilton 65	1 Williams 94 3 Amherst 75
at 5 Hamilton 93 12 Colby-Sawyer 68	4 St. John Fisher 68 5 Hamilton 72
at 6 Southern Vt. 63 11 Lasell 60	3 Amherst 84 6 Southern Vt. 60	3 Amherst 80 2 Rochester 74
at 7 Clark 82 10 Western Conn. 84	2 Rochester 73 10 Western Conn. 62
First Round	Second Round	Sectionals at Wooster
at 8 Scranton 58 9 Buffalo State 56	1 Ursinus 75 at 8 Scranton 77	8 Scranton 64 4 Wooster 75	4 Wooster 68 2 Ramapo 64
at 5 John Carroll 85 11 Pitt-Bradford 65	4 Wooster 77 5 John Carroll 75
at 7 Kings Point 63 12 CCNY 57	2 Ramapo 92 7 Kings Point 76	2 Ramapo 89 6 Montclair State 80
at 6 Montclair State 74 10 Elizabethtown 69	3 Catholic 78 6 Montclair State 95

*D3hoops.com ranked teams in each bracket 1-12 because the NCAA did not release seedings for this year's tournament. Our seedings are unofficial and are meant to give you some idea of the relative strength of each team relative to its bracket. Matchups are not traditional because of geographical considerations and the possibility of a difference of opinion with the NCAA committee.