Virginia Union wins third title
Bryant fought hard but came up short against
Virginia Union in the Division II Men's Basketball Championship final.
The Panthers defense smothered Bryant, keeping the Bulldog shooters on
the perimeter and contesting every shot in the 63-58 win.
Antwan Walton’s three-point play with 1:29 remaining broke a tie and
gave Virginia Union its first NCAA Division II men’s basketball
championship since 1992, a 63-58 triumph over Bryant (R.I.) Saturday
afternoon at Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Walton hit a hanging jumper in the lane and drew the foul as the senior
forward provided the Panthers with their most important points of the
game. Walton finished with a team-high 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Luqman Jaaber’s steal and pair of free throws with six seconds remaining
clinched the victory for Virginia Union. It was a fitting end for the
Panthers, who hit 18-of-20 foul shots in the game, outscoring Bryant
18-4 from the free throw line.
The Panthers led throughout the first half, but a 17-9 run by Bryant
midway through the second half gave the Bulldogs their first lead since
the opening minutes at 50-49. Sophomore Chris Burns, who led all scorers
with 24 points off the bench, scored five of Bryant’s points during the
second half run.
After Virginia Union scored the next nine points to grab a 58-50 lead,
Burns brought Bryant back again, tying the game at 58-58 with a three
from the far corner. The Bulldogs shot 8-of-15 from beyond the arc in
the second half.
However, it wasn’t enough. Walton, who scored 15 of his 19 points in the
second half, broke the final tie almost a minute and a half later to
lift his team to the title.
Virginia Union head coach Dave Robbins become just the third man to win
three Division II national championships and the first to win at least
one title in three different decades. Robbins joins Evansville’s Arad
McCutchan and Cal State Bakersfield’s Pat Douglass as the only
three-time Division II champion coaches.By NCAASports
2004-05 All-American Selection NCAA Division II Player of the Year
David Logan, Indianapolis
NCAA Division II All-American 1st Team Yandel Brown (183-G), Columbus State:
Score-2(27.9)
Letheal Cook, Bowie State: 20.7ppg, 12rpg
Jakim Donaldson, Edinboro: 16.3ppg, 13.1rpg
David Logan, Indianapolis: 28.6ppg
Brad Oleson, Alaska-Fairbanks: Score-5(24.4ppg)
NCAA Division II All-American 2nd Team
Stacey Moragne, Massachusetts-Lowell Lewis Muse, Concord
Travis Robbins, Washburn
Tayron Thomas, Philadelphia Mark Worthington (201-F-83),
Metropolitan State
NCAA Division II All-American 3rd
Team
Ramel Allen, Bridgeport
Damien Argrett, Pfeiffer
Stephen Bahl, Colorado School of Mines
Nick Ellingsworth-Perez, Barry
Turner Trofholz, South Dakota
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