The 2003
NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament
The NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament (officially styled as "Championship" instead of "Tournament") is a tournament to determine the NCAA Division III national champion. It has been held annually from 1975 to 2019 & since 2022, but no ...
was the 29th annual
single-elimination tournament
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
to determine the national champions of
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
(NCAA) men's
Division III
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
collegiate basketball in the United States.
The field contained forty-eight teams, and each program was allocated to one of four sectionals. All sectional games were played on campus sites, while the national semifinals, third-place final, and championship finals were contested at the
Salem Civic Center The Salem Civic Center is a 6,820-seat multi-purpose arena in Salem, Virginia. It was built in 1967 and is part of the James E. Taliaferro Sports and Entertainment Complex (named after a former mayor of Salem), which also includes the Salem Football ...
in
Salem, Virginia
Salem is an independent city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,346. It is the county seat of Roanoke County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combin ...
.
Williams defeated
Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (9 December Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">N.S_19_December.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/now ...
, 67–65, in the championship, clinching their first national title.
The Ephs (31–1) were coached by
Dave Paulsen
Dave Paulsen (born September 14, 1964) is an American college basketball coach who is currently the head coach at Holy Cross. Previously, he was the head men's basketball coach at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. Before arriving a ...
. Paulsen would later coach at Division I programs
Bucknell and
George Mason
George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including s ...
.
Benjamin Coffin, also from Williams, was named Most Outstanding Player.
Bracket
Top left sectional
Bottom left sectional
Top right sectional
Bottom right sectional
National finals
*Site:
Salem Civic Center The Salem Civic Center is a 6,820-seat multi-purpose arena in Salem, Virginia. It was built in 1967 and is part of the James E. Taliaferro Sports and Entertainment Complex (named after a former mayor of Salem), which also includes the Salem Football ...
,
Salem, Virginia
Salem is an independent city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,346. It is the county seat of Roanoke County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combin ...
See also
*
2003 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
*
2003 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament
The 2003 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament was the 47th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball in the United States.
Officially culminating the 2002–03 ...
*
2003 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament
*
2003 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament
*
2003 NAIA Division II men's basketball tournament
References
{{NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament navbox
NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament
Ncaa Tournament
NCAA Men's Division III Basketball