Northwest Missouri State’s 202 title was one for the ages. It was the third nationwide championship in row and the fourth since 2017, and concluded the sixty fifth DII males’s basketball nationwide championship.
Wheaton (Ailing.) gained the primary DII males’s basketball title in 1957, defeating Kentucky Wesleyan 89-65. Wheaton has by no means been again to the championship recreation, however Kentucky Wesleyan has superior to 12 extra title video games, successful an unprecedented eight alongside the way in which.
Let’s check out the applications with probably the most nationwide championships in DII basketball.
STILL ON TOP: Northwest Missouri State wins the 2022 DII males’s basketball nationwide championship
Kentucky Wesleyan, 8 (1966, 1968-69, 1973, 1987, 1990, 1999, 2001)
The Panthers are the benchmark on the subject of DII males’s basketball. They’ve misplaced as many championship video games (5) as the subsequent closest has gained. Kentucky Wesleyan’s resume is as spectacular as any program at any stage. The Panthers have made 19 appearances within the Elite Eight, 17 appearances within the nationwide semifinals, and have registered 87 match wins alongside the way in which. Solely UCLA has extra nationwide championships in faculty basketball than the Panthers.
Evansville, 5 (1959-60, 1964-65, 1971)
Not solely have the Aces gained 5 titles, however the identical head coach additionally hoisted the trophy each time. No head coach in DII males’s basketball has extra titles than Evansville’s Arad McCutchan, and that evidently paid off on his gamers. Jerry Sloan helped lead the Aces to back-to-back titles in 1964 and ’65 earlier than happening to a storied NBA teaching profession himself. The Aces had been the primary workforce to go back-to-back in DII historical past and are certainly one of 4 DII applications to complete a championship season undefeated.
Northwest Missouri State, 4 (2017, 2019, 2021, 2022)
The present dynasty in DII males’s basketball is Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats have gained 4 of the final 5 championships, and have become the primary workforce to repeat as champions since Cal State Bakersfield in 1994. In 2022, the Bearcats grew to become the primary DII males’s basketball workforce made historical past as the primary to win three in a row. Ben McCollum, a graduated of Northwest Missouri State, has led his alma mater to all of its titles.
Cal State Bakersfield, 3 (1993-94, 1997)
A big a part of the Nineties belonged to the Roadrunners, making six appearances within the nationwide semifinals and successful three of their 4 nationwide championship appearances within the decade. Head coach Pat Douglass led them to all three titles, with their 1993, 33-0 season top-of-the-line in DII basketball historical past.
Virginia Union, 3 (1980, 1992, 2005)
The college that produced well-known NBA massive males Charles Oakley and Ben Wallace additionally pumped out three nationwide championship groups. The Panthers like to go away their mark throughout the many years, the one workforce to win one within the 80s, 90s, and 2000s.
Groups with two
5 groups have gained two titles. Florida Southern picked up its second title in 2015, 34 years after successful its first. Central Missouri gained its second title in 2014, 30 years after successful its first again in 1984, holding each of its opponents to 77 factors. Winona State went to three-straight title video games between 2006 and 2008, successful twice. What are the probabilities two Roadrunners seem on the record? Enter Metro State who performed Kentucky Wesleyan within the championship recreation 3 times in 4 years, successful in each 2000 and 2002. And lastly, North Alabama gained twice, as soon as in 1979 earlier than successful once more in 1991.
MORE: These are the very best scoring seasons in DII historical past
Right here is the entire historical past of the DII males’s basketball championship recreation. Notice that there was no winner in 2020, because the match was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| yr | CHAMPION (RECORD) | COACH | SCORE | RUNNER-UP | SITE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Northwest Missouri State (35-5 | Ben McCollum | 67-58 | Augusta | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2021 | Northwest Missouri State (28-2) | Ben McCollum | 80-54 | West Texas A&M | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2019 | Northwest Missouri State (38-0) | Ben McCollum | 64-58 | Level Loma | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2018 | Ferris State (38-1) | Andy Bronkema | 71-69 | Northern State | Sioux Falls, S.D. |
| 2017 | Northwest Missouri St. (35-1) | Ben McCollum | 71-61 | Fairmont State | Sioux Falls, S.D. |
| 2016 | Augustana [S.D.] (34-2) | Tom Billeter | 90-81 | Lincoln Memorial | Frisco, Tex. |
| 2015 | Florida Southern (36-1) | Linc Darner | 77-62 | Indiana (Pa.) | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2014 | Central Missouri (30-5) | Kim Anderson | 84-77 | West Liberty | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2013 | Drury (31-4) | Steve Hesser | 74-73 | Metro State | Atlanta, Ga. |
| 2012 | Western Washington (31-5) | Brad Jackson | 72-65 | Montevallo | Highland Heights, Ky. |
| 2011 | Bellarmine (33-2) | Scott Davenport | 71-68 | BYU-Hawaii | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2010 | Cal Poly Pomona (28-6) | Greg Kamansky | 65-53 | Indiana (Pa.) | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2009 | Findlay (36-0) | Ron Niekamp | 56-53 (ot) | Cal Poly Pomona | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2008 | Winona State (38-1) | Mike Leaf | 87-76 | Augusta State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2007 | Barton (31-5) | Ron Lievense | 77-75 | Winona State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2006 | Winona State (32-4) | Mike Leaf | 73-61 | Virginia Union | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2005 | Virginia Union (30-4) | Dave Robbins | 63-58 | Bryant | Grand Forks, N.D. |
| 2004 | Kennesaw State (35-4) | Tony Ingle | 84-59 | Southern Indiana | Bakersfield, Calif. |
| 2003 | Northeastern State (32-3) | Larry Gipson | 75-64 | **Kentucky Wesleyan | Lakeland, Fla. |
| 2002 | Metro State (29-6) | Mike Dunlap | 80-72 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2001 | Kentucky Wesleyan (31-3) | Ray Harper | 72-63 | Washburn | Bakersfield, Calif. |
| 2000 | Metro State (33-4) | Mike Dunlap | 97-79 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1999 | Kentucky Wesleyan (35-2) | Ray Harper | 75-60 | Metro State | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1998 | UC Davis (31-2) | Bob Williams | 83-77 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1997 | Cal State Bakersfield (29-4) | Pat Douglass | 57-56 | Northern Kentucky | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1996 | Fort Hays State (34-0) | Gary Garner | 70-63 | Northern Kentucky | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1995 | Southern Indiana (29-4) | Bruce Pearl | 71-63 | UC Riverside | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1994 | Cal State Bakersfield (27-6) | Pat Douglass | 92-86 | Southern Indiana | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1993 | Cal State Bakersfield (33-0) | Pat Douglass | 85-72 | Troy | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1992 | Virginia Union (30-3) | Dave Robbins | 100-75 | Bridgeport | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1991 | North Alabama (29-4) | Gary Elliot | 79-72 | Bridgeport | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1990 | Kentucky Wesleyan (31-2) | Wayne Chapman | 93-79 | Cal State Bakersfield | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1989 | North Carolina Central (28-4) | Michael Bernard | 73-46 | Southeast Missouri State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1988 | Massachusetts-Lowell (27-7) | Don Doucette | 75-72 | Alaska Anchorage | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1987 | Kentucky Wesleyan (28-5) | Wayne Chapman | 92-74 | Gannon | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1986 | Sacred Coronary heart (30-4) | Dave Bike | 93-87 | Southeast Missouri State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1985 | Jacksonville State (31-1) | Invoice Jones | 74-73 | South Dakota State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1984 | Central Missouri (29-3) | Lynn Nance | 81-77 | Saint Augustine’s | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1983 | Wright State (18-4) | Ralph Underhill | 92-73 | District of Columbia | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1982 | District of Columbia (25-5) | Wil Jones | 73-63 | Florida Southern | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1981 | Florida Southern (24-8) | Hal Wissel | 73-68 | Mount Saint Mary’s | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1980 | Virginia Union (26-4) | Dave Robbins | 80-74 | SUNYIT | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1979 | North Alabama (22-9) | Invoice Jones | 64-50 | Inexperienced Bay | Springfield, Mo. |
| 1978 | Cheyney (26-2) | John Chaney | 47-40 | Inexperienced Bay | Springfield, Mo. |
| 1977 | Chattanooga (27-5) | RoShumatete | 71-62 | Randolph-Macon | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1976 | Puget Sound (27-7) | Don Zech | 83-74 | Chattanooga | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1975 | Previous Dominion (25-6) | Sonny Allen | 76-74 | New Orleans | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1974 | Morgan State (28-5) | Nathaniel Frazier | 67-52 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1973 | Kentucky Wesleyan (24-6) | Bob Jones | 78-76 (ot) | Tennessee State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1972 | Roanoke (28-4) | Charles Moir | 84-72 | Akron | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1971 | Evansville (22-8) | Arad McCutchan | 97-82 | Previous Dominion | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1970 | Philadelphia College (29-2) | Herb Magee | 76-65 | Tennessee State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1969 | Kentucky Wesleyan (25-5) | Bob Daniels | 75-71 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1968 | Kentucky Wesleyan (28-3) | Bob Daniels | 63-52 | Indiana State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1967 | Winston-Salem (30-2) | C.E. Gaines | 77-74 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1966 | Kentucky Wesleyan (24-6) | Man Sturdy | 54-51 | Southern Illinois | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1965 | Evansville (29-0) | Arad McCutchan | 85-82 (ot) | Southern Illinois | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1964 | Evansville (26-3) | Arad McCutchan | 72-59 | Akron | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1963 | South Dakota State (22-5) | Jim Iverson | 44-42 | Wittenberg | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1962 | Mount Saint Mary’s (24-6) | James Phelan | 58-57 (ot) | Sacramento State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1961 | Wittenberg (25-4) | Ray Mears | 42-38 | Southeast Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1960 | Evansville (25-4) | Arad McCutchan | 90-69 | Chapman | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1959 | Evansville (21-6) | Arad McCutchan | 83-67 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1958 | South Dakota (22-5) | Duane Clodfelter | 75-53 | Saint Michael’s | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1957 | Wheaton (Ailing.) (28-1) | Lee Pfund | 89-65 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Evansville, Ind. |
| **Scholar-Athletes declared ineligible |
