DENVER – Get ready for what should be another closely-contested matchup in MSU Denver's Sweet 16 of its best men's basketball teams in program history. Thursday's first-round matchup is between the No. 7 seed 2004-05 regional champions, and the No. 10 seed, the 1989-90 regional finalists and MSU Denver's first NCAA Tournament team.
Fan voting on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram determines the winner. In Wednesday's matchup, the No. 2 seed national champions from 2001-02 defeated the team from the previous season, the No. 15 seed regional qualifiers from 2000-01, with 77.6 percent of the vote across three platforms. The winner of today's game will try to knock off the 2001-02 team in an April 2 quarterfinal.
Who do you like? Vote for your winner today. Voting will be conducted on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and will run from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m.
The winner will be announced on social media on Friday. You can also read about it Friday on RoadrunnersAthletics.com, along with the preview of Friday's game between the seventh-seeded 2004-05 regional champions and the 10
th-seeded 1989-90 regional finalists.
TODAY'S PREVIEW
#7 seed 2004-05 (29-4, regional champions) vs. #10 seed 1989-90 (28-4, regional qualifiers)
THE MATCHUP
The 2004-05 Roadrunners team, coached by Mike Dunlap, tied for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's regular season championship, won the RMAC Tournament and reached the Elite Eight for the fifth time in seven seasons, going 29-4 overall and 16-3 in RMAC play. They were 17-0 at home with regular-season losses to only Colorado School of Mines, Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State. After winning three regional games, including 89-84 over South Dakota in the final, they were knocked off by eventual champion Virginia Union, 78-63, in the national quarterfinals. The 1989-90 Roadrunners (28-4) were another of Bob Hull's great teams from the early era of MSU Denver basketball. They stunned a Mississippi team led by first-round draft choice Gerald Glass, a senior who later played four seasons in the NBA, in an 86-81 victory, and played against an Illinois team littered with future pros such as Kendall Gill, Marcus Liberty and Stephen Bardo. They were 15-0 at home, won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference title at 8-2 (including a 106-83 rout of second-ranked Alaska-Anchorage) and lost three games to Division II teams: by three in overtime at Seattle Pacific, by eight at then-No. 4 Alaska-Anchorage and by five to 15
th-ranked host North Dakota in the North Central Regional. North Dakota went on to finish third at the Elite Eight.
THE STARTERS
2004-05 (29-4) Ht. Yr. Pts Reb Ast
F—Mark Worthington 6-9 Sr. 19.8 6.2 2.2
F—Michael Morse 6-6 Sr. 14.3 6.8 2.2
C—Ben Ortner 6-9 Sr. 15.9 7.1 1.4
G—Greg Muth 6-1 Jr. 7.2 1.7 3.6
G—Keith Borgan 5-10 Sr. 13.4 2.4 3.4
Off the bench: Drew Williamson (6-5, Jr., 4.5 ppg, 1.8 rpg),
Michael Bahl (6-5, So., 3.9 ppg, 1.7 rpg), Dustin Ballard (6-3, Jr., 2.3 ppg, 0.8 rpg).
1989-90 (28-4) Ht. Yr. Pts Reb Ast
F—Shun Tillman 6-7 Sr. 18.7 9.2 1.8
F—Lewis Rhone 6-3 Sr. 7.5 5.2 1.1
C—Mike Paulsen 6-9 Sr. 10.3 7.8 1.2
G—Ralph Rivers 6-3 So. 11.9 5.7 1.8
G—Gene Edwards 6-2 Sr. 20.8 4.9 4.1
Off the bench: Darrell Hite (6-4, Sr., 8.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg), Adrian Hutt (5-9, Jr., 8.1 ppg, 7.1 apg), T.J. Milan (6-3, So., 2.4 ppg, 1.3 rpg).
2004-05: Not only could the Roadrunners send out an imposing front line that included three players (Ben Ortner, Michael Morse and Mark Worthington) averaging more than six rebounds per game, they could also shoot it. MSU Denver shot 42.5 percent from 3-point range, with Greg Muth (45 of 86, 52.3 percent), Drew Williamson (32 of 63, 50.8 percent) and Keith Borgan (53 of 111, 47.7 percent) leading the way. Worthington was an All-American. Ortner averaged 2.8 blocked shots per game. The Roadrunners opened the season 15-0 and were ranked No. 1 in Division II before losing 74-71 at Colorado School of Mines. The Roadrunners later lost on the road to perennial powers Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State (Kan.), but took an eight-game winning streak (including a 72-49 win over Mines) into the Elite Eight. They got to that point by making a school-record 82.4 percent from 3-point range (14 of 17) in the 89-84 win over South Dakota in the North Central Regional final at the Auraria Event Center.
1989-90: Besides getting the elite play of Gene Edwards (20.8 points, 4.1 assists) and Shun Tillman (18.7 points, 9.2 rebounds), this team could seriously pound the boards, outrebounding its foes by an average of 11.4 per game. All five regular starters averaged at least 4.9 rebounds per game and Darrell Hite came off the bench for another 4.5. Also typically coming off the bench was point guard Adrian Hutt, who averaged 7.1 assists. Both Edwards and Tillman were named All-American second team by different organizations. Tillman ranks 10
th in MSU Denver history with 1,502 career points and is second with 915 rebounds and 170 blocked shots. Edwards scored 1,171 points in his career, good for 16
th on the all-time list, and is seventh with 181 career steals. Edwards had 26 points in the win over Ole Miss, while Tillman had 18 points and 13 rebounds against Illinois. Edwards scored a single-season school record 666 points, a mark that stood until Brandon Jefferson scored 734 in 2013-14 and still ranks second.
You've got your scouting report, now pick your winner and vote!
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
FIRST ROUND/SWEET 16
Thursday, March 19: #1 1999-2000 def. #16 1990-91, 85.7-14.3
Friday, March 20: #8 2011-12 def. #9 2002-03, 56.7-43.3
Monday, March 23: #13 2014-15 def. #4 1998-99, 59.0-41.0
Tuesday, March 24: #5 2013-14 def. #12 2008-09, 71.6-28.4
Wednesday, March 25: #2 2001-02 def. #15 2000-01, 77.6-22.4
Thursday, March 26: #7 2004-05 vs. #10 1989-90
Friday, March 27: #3 2012-13 vs. #14 1997-98
Monday, March 30: #6 2003-04 vs. #11 2006-07
QUARTERFINALS/ELITE 8
Tuesday, March 31: #1 1999-2000 vs. #8 2011-12
Wednesday, April 1: #13 2014-15 vs. #5 2013-14
Thursday, April 2: #2 2001-02 vs. March 26 winner
Friday, April 3: March 27 winner vs. March 30 winner
SEMIFINALS/FINAL 4
Monday, April 6: March 31 winner vs. April 1 winner
Tuesday, April 7: April 2 winner vs. April 3 winner
CHAMPIONSHIP
Wednesday, April 8: April 6 winner vs. April 7 winner
TOURNAMENT SEEDINGS:
- 1999-2000 National Champions (33-4 overall/17-2 RMAC/RMAC regular-season and tourney champs). Coached by Mike Dunlap.
- 2001-02 National Champions (29-6 overall/16-3 RMAC). Dunlap.
- 2012-13 National Runners-Up (32-3/20-2/RMAC regular-season and tourney champs). Coached by Derrick Clark.
- 1998-99 National Runners-Up (28-6/15-4/RMAC division and tourney champs). Dunlap.
- 2013-14 National semifinalists (32-2/22-0/RMAC regular season and tourney champs). Clark.
- 2003-04 National semifinalists (32-3/19-0/RMAC regular season and tourney champs). Dunlap.
- 2004-05 Regional champions (29-4/16-3/RMAC regular season and tourney champs). Dunlap.
- 2011-12 Regional champions (25-7/17-5). Clark.
- 2002-03 Regional finalists (28-5/16-3/RMAC tourney champs/lost in 2 OT in regional final). Dunlap.
- 1989-90 Regional finalists (28-4/8-2 GNAC/GNAC regular season champs). Coached by Bob Hull.
- 2006-07 Regional semifinalists (28-4/17-2 RMAC/RMAC regular season and tourney champs). Coached by Brannon Hays.
- 2008-09 Regional qualifiers, No. 3 seed (27-4/18-1/RMAC regular season and tourney champs). Hays.
- 2014-15 Regional qualifiers, No. 2 seed (26-6/19-3/RMAC regular season champs). Clark.
- 1997-98 Regional qualifiers, No. 4 seed (25-5/16-3/RMAC regular season champs). Dunlap.
- 2000-01 Regional qualifiers, No. 4 seed (23-7/14-5/RMAC tourney champs). Dunlap.
- 1990-91 Regional third place, No. 3 seed (23-8/8-2 CAC/CAC regular season champs). Hull.
