Calvin Falls to Rochester at NCAA III Final Four

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR MARCH 18, 2005

MEN'S BASKETBALL

SALEM, VA * In its last trip to the NCAA III Final Four, Calvin reaped the benefits of a last-second shot to claim a semifinal victory and advance to the national championship game. Using a short runner in the lane by freshman Bryan Foltice in the 2000 semifinals against Franklin & Marshall, Calvin recorded a 79-77 victory and would go on to win the national championship the following afternoon against UW-Eau Claire.

 On Friday night in a national semifinal game against the University of Rochester, the tables were turned as the Knights were stung by a game-winning shot in the closing seconds.

A three-pointer by Rochester senior Brandon McCallister with just 4.7 seconds left to play proved to be the difference in Friday's national semifinal game as the Yellow Jackets pulled out a come-from-behind 65-62 victory over the Knights of Calvin.

The three-pointer by McCallister capped a 9-1 Rochester run over the final 3:42 of regulation. Rochester (25-4) advances to the national championship game Saturday afternoon at 5:00 pm (EST) where it will face defending national champion UW-Stevens Point (28-3). Calvin will face York College (28-3) in the consolation final on Saturday at 2:30.

Calvin held a 62-59 lead with 2:51 remaining but would not score again as Rochester would tie the game at 62 on a jumper in the lane by freshman Jon Onyiruka with time ticking down on the shot clock and just 1:06 left on the game.

Calvin (26-7) would wind the clock down under a minute but would misfire on a shot with 42 seconds left to play with Rochester grabbing the rebound.

The Yellow Jackets would call time out with 23 seconds to play to set up a final shot. Rochester would put the ball in the hands of senior point guard Gabe Perez who would skip a pass to McCallister stationed well beyond the three-point arc. With a hand in his face, McCallister lofted a 22-footer that would swish through the hoop with 4.7 seconds left. Calvin attempted to push the ball up the floor but could not get a shot off in the closing seconds.

Calvin had taken a 61-56 lead with an 18-4 second half scoring run that not only gave the Knights the lead but also the momentum.

"I thought we had gotten over the hump at that point," said Calvin men's basketball coach Kevin Vande Streek. "We were playing more relaxed on offense and pushing the pace of the game."
But Rochester would dig in on defense, forcing Calvin to work hard for its shots. Field goal attempts by senior Dan Aultman (Mason County Central HS) and sophomore Josh Meckes (Saginaw Valley Lutheran HS) would both rim in and out in the closing minutes with the Yellow Jackets snapping up the rebounds.

"It was a very intense game. A great defensive battle," said Vande Streek. "I thought we did a very good job of keeping them off the offensive glass but I thought Rochester also did a great job of playing defense on us."

Calvin held the lead for the majority of the first half only to see Rochester rip off a 9-1 run over the final 3:37 to take a 34-30 halftime lead.

A 9-2 spurt triggered by Rochester sophomore Tim Brackney midway through the second half appeared to put Calvin on the ropes as the Yellow Jackets led 52-43 with just 9:01 to play. Brackney would score seven of Rochester's nine points in the run while assisting on the other two, forcing Calvin to call timeout.

Calvin would then mount its 18-4 run, using three-pointers from senior Ricky Shilts (Kalamazoo Central HS) and Brad Sall (Unity Christian HS) to jump-start the comeback. The triple by Sall pulled the Knights to within a point at 55-54 and Aultman would give Calvin its first lead of the second half at 56-55 with a pair of free throws with 6:17 to play.

Rochester would tie the game at 56 but a putback by junior Joel Hoekstra (Unity Christian HS), a free throw by Hoekstra and two free throws by Sall would give the Knights a 61-56 lead, setting up a frantic final four minutes.

"This one really hurts because we were that close to getting over the hump and playing for a national championship," said Aultman. "We'll regroup though and I know we'll play hard tomorrow. As a senior, I want to go out a winner and play well for Calvin College which has been so good to me."

According to Hoekstra, the final outcome leaving the Knights feeling like they should have come out with more. "We feel like we should have won the game," said Hoekstra. "But give credit to Rochester. They fought hard and hit the big shot at the end."

Calvin was led in defeat by Aultman and Hoekstra who scored 16 points apiece with Aultman grabbing nine rebounds and Hoekstra six boards. Shilts would add nine points and four steals.

Rochester was led by two-time All-American Seth Hauben who picked up his 20th double-double of the year with 15 points and 10 boards but was just 4 of 10 from the field. Brackney followed with 13 points off the bench including three triples. Rochester's backcourt tandem of McCallister and Perez were next with 12 points apiece with Perez dishing out six assists and collecting five steals. All 12 of McCallister's points were from beyond the arc as he connected on four trifectas.

Calvin would finish with its third-lowest field goal percentage of the year as the Knights connected on just 36.2 percent of its attempts while Rochester hit 44.2 percent of its field goal attempts.

Free throw shooting would also prove to be crucial as Calvin connected on just 13 of 21 (.619) from the floor including the front end of a bonus opportunity in the first half. Rochester would hit 11 of 15 (.733) at the charity stripe but would turn the ball over 15 times with Calvin committing 12 turnovers.

Calvin did hold a 39-36 rebounding advantage including a 13-7 advantage on the offensive glass.

With his 16-point effort, Aultman moved to within eight points of the 1,000 point plateau for his career. Aultman is bidding to become just the second two-year player in Calvin men's basketball history to reach the 1,000 point plateau. The only player to do it thus far is Dan Davis who amassed 1,121 points from 1987-to-1989 at Calvin. Like Aultman, Davis is also a graduate of Muskegon Community College.

Rochester will be making its third appearance in the national championship game as it won the title in 1990 with a 43-42 victory over DePauw and then lost the 1992 final to Calvin 62-49. Friday's semifinal game between Calvin and Rochester marked just the second-ever meeting between the two schools with both meetings coming in the NCAA III Final Four.

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Fri Mar 18 21:18:11 2005