Spring 1999

Men's basketball makes NCAA tournament again

Rose-Hulman’s men’s basketball team captured a league championship as a first-year member of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, and made its third trip to the NCAA tournament in the past four seasons.

Coach Jim Shaw’s Engineers compiled a 20-6 overall record, concluding with a disappointing 66-59 first-round NCAA Tournament loss at Maryville (Tenn.). Rose-Hulman did enjoy the school’s third NCAA recognized 20-win season in school history.

The team relied on a senior-laden starting lineup to claim its third conference championship (regular season and tournament) in the last four years. Senior guard Bryan Egli paced the Engineers with a scoring average of 22.8 points per game. (See accompanying article.) Center Sam Johnson emerged as a force in the middle, averaging 12.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest. Power forward Matt Millington became a perimeter threat (39.1% from three-point range) and a solid interior defender by grabbing a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game. Senior guard Joe Puthoff furthered his reputation as one of the region’s top defenders and buried several clutch three-point field goals.

Egli and Shaw were honored as the SCAC’s Player and Coach of the Year. Shaw received his second men’s basketball Coach of the Year award in the past three seasons.