2001-02 News
Not a bad start to the trip of a lifetime for the Wittenberg University men's and women's basketball teams. Touring China for a unique trip that will combine educational opportunities with athletic competitions, the Tiger teams played their first games in the Far East on Monday and came up with a pair of victories.
The University of Dayton and Wittenberg University have announced that they have agreed to meet on the basketball court next year, and on the football field in 2005 and 2006.
With the season now complete, one last accolade came rolling along recently. Junior center B.J. Harris (Riverside, Ohio/Stebbins) was selected second team All-Great Lakes Region by a panel of Sports Information Directors voting for d3hoops.com.
The Wittenberg University men’s basketball program enjoyed another outstanding season in 2001-02. The Tigers went back-to-back in capturing a second consecutive outright North Coast Athletic Conference regular season championship.
All season, there had been few mountains too large to climb for the Wittenberg University Tiger men's basketball team. On Saturday, the peak that the Tigers encountered at DePauw University in the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament was exactly that. The Tigers rallied valiantly late in the game, but they eventually ran out of time, falling to DePauw 89-76.
Two coaches who are no strangers to success picked up more hardware for their trophy cases on Monday. Wittenberg University Men's Basketball Head Coach Bill Brown and Women's Basketball Head Coach Pam Smith were both named North Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in a vote of their peers, the conference office announced.
All season, there had been few mountains too large to climb for the Wittenberg University Tiger mens basketball team. On Saturday, the peak that the Tigers encountered at DePauw University in the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament was exactly that.
Old habits die hard, especially ones that have proven to be this effective. Once again enjoying a huge second half, the Wittenberg Tigers overwhelmed visiting Franklin College 75-44 on Thursday night at HPER Center in NCAA Division III tournament action.
The Wittenberg University men's basketball team believed all season that it was good enough to compete on a national level. Now Head Coach Bill Brown and his North Coast Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champion Tigers will get their opportunity to prove it.
The Wittenberg University men's basketball team believed all season that it was good enough to compete on a national level. Now Head Coach Bill Brown and his North Coast Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champion Tigers will get their opportunity to prove it.
It was only the second lead Wittenberg University had all day, but it was the one that mattered.
It's never easy to beat a team three times in one season, especially when the first two games were so hotly contested. But first-seeded Wittenberg bucked the odds on Friday night, defeating fourth-seeded Ohio Wesleyan 75-69 in another hard-fought but fairly well-played NCAC tournament semifinal game.
It was a script that Hollywood screenwriters would envy. Last Saturday, the Wittenberg University men's and women's basketball teams both concluded their regular seasons in dramatic fashion, wrapping up North Coast Athletic Conference championships with wins over top contenders.
The Wittenberg Tigers have made a habit of starting slow but finishing strong in recent weeks. Once again on Tuesday night the No. 1 seed in the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament turned it on in the final 20 minutes, this time burying visiting Earlham 78-51.
All season the Wittenberg Tigers have had few questions to answer, except for the pressing issue of finding that go-to player with the game on the line. It is possible that question has once again been answered - and once again the reply is that basketball is a team game and the Tigers have plenty of members who can step up in the clutch.
It wasn't easy, but somehow that clinching win usually isn't. But in the end, the Wittenberg Tigers put together a strong second half to slowly pull away from the visiting Earlham Quakers 81-60 and clinch a share of a second straight North Coast Athletic Conference regular season championship.