Mocs Complete Storybook Ending By Claiming NIT Championship

INDIANAPOLIS – As confetti rained down on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga basketball team surrounded by a legion of adoring Mocs fans inside of Hinkle Fieldhouse on Thursday night, head coach Dan Earl quietly took in the moment while waiting his turn to ascend the ladder to remove the remaining fragments of the net left dangling from the rim.

Minutes earlier, UTC’s Garrison Keeslar had connected on a jumper from the lane on that same goal to provide Chattanooga (29-9) with the winning margin in an 85-84 overtime thriller over UC Irvine (32-7) to claim the National Invitation Tournament. But in that brief interlude amid the revelry, Earl kept his focus on that ladder and what it represented in his team’s magical run this season.

“It’s been a while since I climbed one of these, probably since I was a coach at Penn State when we won the NIT,” Earl joked. “I hope I can make it up without any help and not hurt myself.”

The large steel-framed ladder was emblematic of this scintillating, death-defying run over the past three weeks that culminated with the Mocs completing a clean sweep over five games. It was an uphill climb, one rung at a time, never glancing up at the peak until they reached the summit.

But once they were there, boy, was the view ever glorious.

The game represented a microcosm of the entire season for Chattanooga: trailing by what seemed like an insurmountable deficit, digging deep into a limitless reservoir of guts and grit to battle back, getting contributions up and down the lineup at critical junctures, and finally just willing themselves across the finish line.

Given a million chances to fold their tents and walk away content with a fantastic season and a runner-up finish, this Mocs squad simply refused to lose. It wasn’t a thing of beauty, but was it ever a masterpiece in the annals of Chattanooga basketball history.

Both teams had multiple chances to win the game, but there was only one team of destiny on the floor that would not be denied. Keeslar’s game-winner with 11 seconds left in overtime provided the eventual margin, but the victory was secured thanks to a gut-wrenching miss from the Anteaters at point-blank range at the buzzer after inbounding the ball with two seconds remaining.

The Mocs forced overtime by overcoming a six-point deficit with 2:30 remaining in regulation, regaining new life thanks to a pair of Keeslar 3-pointers. Once again, UC Irvine left a crack in the door by missing three free throws in the final 29 seconds of regulation.

Honor Huff gave Chattanooga its first lead since halftime, 76-74, by converting three free throws with 16 seconds left. Then former UTC guard Myles Che, who transferred to the Anteaters after last season, was fouled with 12 seconds remaining on a 3-point try but missed the last attempt that would have given his squad a victory as the Mocs were unable to capitalize on two good looks in the waning seconds, sending the game into an extra five minutes.

The night could not have started any better for the Mocs. Chattanooga opened by scoring the game’s first eight points thanks to a pair of 3-pointers from Collin Mulholland, who joined Trey Bonham as UTC’s leading scorers with 19 points each. But UC Irvine responded with a 15-5 run to take the lead midway through the first half.

It appeared that the Mocs would once again find themselves on the short end of a halftime score until Bonham launched a last-second shot just beyond half-court that found the nets, giving UTC momentum and a 38-37 edge at intermission as he celebrated with NFL Hall of Famer and former Chattanooga two-sport star Terrell Owens who was seated courtside.

The Anteaters parlayed an 11-2 run to open the second half to build an eight-point cushion as Chattanooga missed on seven of its first eight shots to open the frame. But the Mocs kept chipping away, trimming the deficit to a single point on five different occasions only to have UC Irvine respond with a timely basket each time.

But these never-say-die Mocs refused to go away, staging their furious comeback in the final two minutes that ultimately led to them being crowned NIT champions. Even when their backs were against the wall, there was a sense of self-belief that caught Earl’s attention.

“Looking in the huddles and seeing those guys and their belief, and them looking back at me in the eye and looking at each other and saying, ‘Hey, we've been here before. Let's just get it done’. I think that says a lot about the result,” Earl said.

For Keeslar, one of four fifth-year transfers who envisioned a moment like this when casting his lot with UTC, it was a dream come true.

“God is good, that's all I have to say,” said Keeslar, who stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals. “This was amazing. You couldn't write a story book ending any better than this, and what this team did and accomplished was unbelievable. We've been resilient all year. That's a championship team, and we showed how championship teams should play.”

Bonham continued his stellar play and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player for the manner he put this team on his back at the most critical times. He scored 11 of his 19 points in the first half, then fearlessly challenged the Anteater’s 7-foot center Bent Leuchten with a pair of key drives to the basket late in regulation and another in overtime, adding ten rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals to his night’s work.

“After the SoCon tournament, I was pretty down on myself for not ever going to the NCAA tournament,” Bonham said. “I kind of felt like my career was a failure at that moment. But people around me quickly made sure that I knew we’ve still got basketball to play, and I can still be a champion in a different way. I was just glad to do it with this group of guys and just blessed to be here.”

Mulholland was another key contributor, with his his range from outside extending the UC Irvine defense. He finished with five 3-pointers among his six field goals, including a three with 1:23 left in overtime to give Chattanooga a one-point lead.

“I wasn't shooting great in the first half, but my coaches told me to keep shooting,” Mulholland said. “So, I just was listening to the coaches. My teammates just kept finding me, and they never lost confidence in me a single time.

“It doesn't even feel real. It feels like a fairy tale. I’ve tried to do my best to cherish it and take it one game at a time. I love these guys. I love these coaches. This is a once in a lifetime experience.”

Bash Wieland, who tallied nine points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists in his final collegiate game, was in near disbelief following the contest.

“Let's get this out of the way - I can't believe we won,” Wieland said. “What a feeling! It's crazy how God wraps up a lot of good in the bad. To think that we were so dejected after we didn't make the NCAA tournament, and then to not only play in the NIT, but win five straight games for a championship. You can't write a better story than that.”

It is also impossible to overlook the continued spectacular play of Huff, who finished with 14 points while adding to his Division I 3-point lead with three more long-range connections. He never left the floor the entire game, his performance earning him a spot on the all-tournament team.

The Mocs endured one of their poorest shooting performances on the season, making only 37% (28-of-76) and 32% (14-of-44) from 3-point range. Meanwhile, UC Irvine shot 47% from the field and 31% on 3-pointers but were undone with their struggles at the charity stripe where they made 21-of-34 – including 2-of-6 in overtime – compared to Chattanooga’s 15-of-21 outcome on free throws.

UC Irvine placed all five starters in double figures, led by Devin Tillis with 19. Justin Hohn added 17, Jurian Dixon tallied 16, Leuchten finished with 15 and Che closed with 13.

“I’m super proud of these guys, as everyone says when you win a championship like this, but they're a wonderful young group,” Earl said. They remained completely unselfish, played the right way throughout the year. This might have been our least efficient offensive game in I can't even tell you how long. So, there was some grit and defense involved in this game, which we were fortunate to come out on top.”

While this wonderful odyssey in the NIT would not have even transpired had UTC attained its original goal of making it into the NCAA Tournament, Keeslar offered some perspective on these past three weeks that led to Thursday’s coronation.

“After we lost the (SoCon) tournament in that overtime game, it was devastating,” Keeslar said. “We all wanted to go to the NCAA tournament. But the coaches helped us, and our team came together to quickly turn the page, and we knew we had a special group of guys that had a chance to make a run in the NIT.

“Honestly, I think the biggest thing was we didn't want it to end. This is a great group of guys. This is special. You don't get this very often, and so we wanted to play as long as we can. I mean, we had a triple overtime game with MTSU. When this game went to overtime, I looked at Trey and was like, ‘We get to play five more minutes of basketball with each other, so let’s just try to play as long as we can’.

And play they did, until there were no more opponents to defeat. No more mountains to scale. The only thing left was a ladder to climb to retrieve a net that was rightfully theirs, won in the unlikeliest of ways that will forever be a hallmark of these scrappy Mocs.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com