Tartans Season Comes to an End in NCAA First Round

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team opened the 2024 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Tournament on Friday afternoon with an 81-69 setback to Rowan University in our nation's capital at Catholic University.

Game Information
Carnegie Mellon 69, Rowan 81
Records: Carnegie Mellon (16-10), Rowan (20-7)
Location: Washington, D.C. (Franny Murray Court)

How it Happened

• The Profs scored nine straight points over a stretch of 2:33 and led 21-9 at the 13:13 mark of the first half following a layup by Khalif Meares.
• The Tartans answered scoring the next 16 which gave them the first lead of the contest at 25-21 with 7:33 showing on the clock. During the run six different Tartans scored as the team converted 7-of-10 from the floor with sophomore Buckley DeJardin leading the charge with five points.
• Over the remainder of the half, the lead changed hands eight times with the score tied on three other occasions until junior Aidan Murphy drained a triple from the corner as the shot clock was expiring off a pass from senior R.J. Holmes to give Carnegie Mellon a 37-34 advantage with two minutes left in the half.
• Holmes then had a tip-in as time expired in the first frame to give the Tartans a 43-39 lead at the break.
• With the Tartans leading 49-43, the Profs rattled off five straight points to pull within a point at 49-48, but the Tartans responded once again and scored the next nine points to take a 58-48 lead with 11:56 to play in regulation.
• A triple by senior Jack Stone made the score 61-50 at the 10:32 mark, but over the next 2:35 Rowan scored nine straight and made the score 61-59.   
• With 4:48 to play, Rowan's Marcellus Ross connected on a three-pointer from the corner to give the Profs a 68-65 lead, one they would never relinquish.
• The Profs lead grew to 71-65 with 2:52 play on a converted traditional three-point play by Ross.
• Over the final two minutes, Rowan converted 10-of-12 from the foul line to seal the win.

Tartan Stats

• The Tartans shot 41.0% from the floor while connecting on 6-of-27 for 22.2% from behind the arc. The Cardinal and Gray were also 13-of-19 from the foul line.
• Holmes led the Tartans with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
• Sophomore Justin Allen finished the game with 13 points.

Prof Stats

• The Profs shot 40.3% from the floor while connecting on 5-of-19 for 26.3% from behind the arc. The Profs were also 26-of-35 from the foul line.
• Ja'Zere Noel led the Profs with 22 points.
• Meares finished with 20 while Ross scored 13.

Game Notes

• The Tartans are now 1-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament contests.
• This was the first meeting between the two teams.
• Holmes had seven double-doubles this season and 22 for his career.
• Allen ends the season with 557 points and is the Tartans single-season leader.
• Holmes ends his Tartan career with 621 rebounds and ranks 10th all-time in program history.