ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's basketball team defeated #1 Alvernia University 65-63 on Sunday afternoon to secure the 2023 ECAC Division III Men's Basketball Tournament Championship.
 
The Saxons (22-7, 14-4 Empire 8) were honored to have Brewster Marshall (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) and Mike Schmidt (Olean, NY/Olean) named to the ECEC Division III Men's Basketball All-Tournament Team. Marshall was additionally named as the tournament's Most Valuable Player, totaling 50 points and 11 rebounds on the weekend.
 
"It's truly hard for me to put into words what this group means to me," Head Coach Erich Kaempffe said. "I think how they responded and played this weekend after a tough loss in the Empire 8 Tournament shows what kind of people they are – individually and collectively. It wasn't exactly how we wanted the season to go but winning your last game and winning a postseason championship is something not a ton of people get to do. Our guys deserve it and I'm so happy for them. A ton of credit to Alvernia and Coach Miller. They are a terrific program, played had today, and their seniors had great careers."
 
Alfred University relied on Marshall early in the first half, as he was responsible for team's first five points. The Golden Wolves led for most of the opening half, but 11 additional points from Marshall tied the game 31-31 going into the break. A jump shot from Elliot Bowen (Salamanca, NY/Ellicotville) was followed by a successful shot from Marshall to give AU the lead. An 8-0 run from Alvernia had AU trailing by as many as six points with just over 10 minutes to play. The Saxons responded with an 8-0 run of their own to take back the lead. In the final minutes, baskets from Adam Enders (Belfast, NY/Belfast), Darren Miller (Seneca Falls, NY/Mynderse Academy) and Schmidt gave Alfred University a four-point advantage with 10 seconds remaining. Alvernia scored once more in the final seconds, but were unable to land a full-court shot as the clock expired.
 
"I wanted to thank Coach Beam, Coach Gelb, Evan Hamed, and Ron Demchak for all their work, help, and support this season," Kaempffe said. "I am so incredibly fortunate to work with people like them and our program would be nothing like it is without them."