For an NYU team that won 22 games this season by 20-plus points, things were still uncharacteristically hanging in the balance after two quarters in the Division III national title game.
The Violets, who came into the final contest on Saturday at Capital Center Performance Arena in Columbus, Ohio with a sterling 30-0 record, were just up by two points at the half against a 30-3 Smith team and were outscored by three in the second quarter.
Smith coach Lynn Hersey and her Pioneers squad held NYU’s “firepower” in check and even got the defensive game they wanted by keeping the Violets to 23 points at the half.
But this was NYU coach Meg Barber’s dream team, and it found a way to make things happen.
The Violets willed their way to a 51-41 victory, finishing off their undefeated season and claiming their first national title since 1997.
For a team that dominated the DIII women’s college basketball landscape during the 2023-24 season and toppled Transylvania University’s 64-game winning streak in the national semifinals, the Violets jubilantly singing Alicia Keys’ “nothing you can’t do” lyrics from the song “Empire State of Mind” at center court after the win made all the sense in the world.
Barber, an NYU alumna (2002) herself, could not have been more proud of her bunch.
“It’s overwhelming — I love this program so much,” the victorious coach said on the CBS Sports Network broadcast after the game. “It means the world.”
Almost poetically, it was graduate student Morgan Morrison — the four-year Smith star — who led the way for NYU with a team-high 14 points and nine rebounds.
“Morgan is a pro,” Burns said after the game. “What an emotional thing to go up against a team that you played for for three years. But she handled herself so amazingly, so proud of her.”
Natalie Bruns, D3hoops.com’s Player of the Year, added nine points, nine rebounds and five blocks.
Belle Pellecchia and Megan Bauman scored 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Their individual efforts, along with adjustments and some perseverance helped pave the way for the national title victory.
That especially became paramount after the second quarter, when NYU netted just eight points.
NYU’s defense clamped down in the second half and yielded 20 points over the final two quarters.
Though the Violets were outrebounded 41-38, their discipline kept Smith from the free-throw line, as the Pioneers hit just one of three chances from the charity stripe.
Meanwhile, NYU went 11-for-16 on its free-throw attempts.
It all came down to trust and having each other’s backs, and NYU accomplished just that en route to the trophy and a moment of pure exuberance.
“Even just today, it was getting to the locker room and trusting each other and making adjustments and trusting our staff and just playing together,” Barber said. “I’m stunned — it’s unbelievable.”