{"id":66911,"date":"2025-04-04T18:58:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T22:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=66911"},"modified":"2025-04-08T10:51:21","modified_gmt":"2025-04-08T14:51:21","slug":"nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/","title":{"rendered":"NIT champions: UTC men’s basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The

The Chattanooga Mocs men’s basketball team arrived home to a celebration outside of McKenzie Arena. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

Faculty, students, alumni and Chattanooga community members packed outside of McKenzie Arena on Friday, April 4, to welcome home the newly crowned NIT champions.<\/p>\n

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men\u2019s basketball team made history the night before at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, becoming the first Southern Conference school to win the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).<\/p>\n

Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu, a mechatronics professor and head of the Department of Engineering Management and Technology, was among the faculty waiting to greet the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always support them because they deserve it,\u201d said Kaplanoglu, a Mocs Club member and former European professional basketball coach. \u201cThey do well at practice. They do well at everything. I still have poison in my blood for basketball. I never miss games.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tom Griscom, a 1971 UTC alum and former White House Communications Director, made the trek to Indianapolis and back to Chattanooga to be there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a long family history here,\u201d Griscom said. \u201cMy great aunt was chairman of the English department at the University. I have an older brother who went here and graduated. Of course, I did. I met my wife here. UTC is part of our lives, and we enjoy watching the athletic program teams here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Griscom said the energy inside Hinkle Fieldhouse was electric and felt like a game in the McKenzie Arena Roundhouse.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want these young men and women to know there are people out there who care about them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Senior communication major and political science minor Guy DeWeese was among the students supporting the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy heart rate was going through the roof the whole game,\u201d DeWeese said. \u201cSeeing Dan Earl with Trey Bonham and Honor Huff together and the fans chanting one more year for Honor just means something more.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy freshman year, we won the Southern Conference tournament. David Jean-Baptiste hit that famous shot. This felt like a full circle moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Honor

Honor Huff (right) exits the team bus at the campus celebration.<\/p><\/div>\n

An 8-0 run to start the game, Trey Bonham\u2019s half-court buzzer beater and Garrison Keeslar\u2019s game-winning elbow jumper propelled the Mocs to an instant classic 85-84 overtime victory over the University of California, Irvine on Thursday night.<\/p>\n

The road to the title was paved with hard-fought battles, including a first-round triple-overtime win against Middle Tennessee State University, a quarterfinal matchup against Bradley University decided on a Bonham three in the closing seconds and a hard-fought 80-73 win over Loyola University Chicago in the semifinals.<\/p>\n

In the championship game, Bonham and freshman forward Collin Mulholland led the way for the Mocs, scoring 19 points each. Mulholland dropped a career-high five 3-pointers and Bonham corralled a team-high 10 rebounds.<\/p>\n

Bonham\u2019s tournament performances earned him the NIT Most Outstanding Player award.<\/p>\n

Honor Huff, the Division I leader in three-pointers made (131), added another 14 points.<\/p>\n

Senior guard Keeslar dominated all phases of the game, scoring 14 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and facilitating a team-high five assists. His midrange jumper with 11 seconds on the clock was the deciding bucket.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve dealt with adversity all year,\u201d said Huff, a junior communication major from Brooklyn, New York, at the welcome celebration. \u201cWe had injuries at the beginning of the season, and we came into the conference after starting at eight and five. There were a lot of doubts about us and we figured it out quickly and ended up going on a run.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be able to do it with this team, the camaraderie that we have and the fanbase that we have \u2026 dealing with close games, we\u2019re just a mature group. That\u2019s what we do. We\u2019ve been able to come together and really hone in on everything that we talked about in the summer. To get this done\u2014it\u2019s a great feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Mocs tied a program record with 29 wins this season. It was their deepest postseason run since winning the 1977 Division II National Championship.<\/p>\n

Dan Earl set the school record for most wins by a head coach in his first three years with 68 and ranks second in program history with five postseason victories.<\/p>\n

Huff, Bonham and Earl all started their careers at VMI and\u2014together\u2014got to hoist the NIT trophy at UTC.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe lost in the championship last year,\u201d Huff said. \u201cWe lost in the semifinal this year. To be able to do something special for this community and fan base is special. Just look around at the support we\u2019re getting. To be able to reciprocate that with something like a championship is the best feeling in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Photo gallery by Angela Foster<\/h4>\n
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Men\u2019s <\/a>
Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.<\/p>\n

Continue Reading <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2000,"featured_media":66936,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_slider":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_featurette":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[64,72,15,61,4866,3,12659,7712,661],"tags":[124428,123827,99083,125397,124208,123828,10187,124776,123829,83427],"class_list":{"0":"post-66911","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-athletics","8":"category-campus","9":"category-college-of-arts-sciences","10":"category-communication","11":"category-community","12":"category-events-entertainment","13":"category-faculty-and-staff","14":"category-news","15":"category-students","16":"tag-carter-graham","17":"tag-creating-the-mocs-experience","18":"tag-erkan-kaplanoglu","19":"tag-guy-deweese","20":"tag-honor-huff","21":"tag-leveraging-our-special-place-as-chattanoogas-university","22":"tag-mens-basketball","23":"tag-mocs-learn-mocs-do-mocs-lead","24":"tag-operating-with-excellence","25":"tag-tom-griscom","26":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nNIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"850\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Peyton Schultz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Carter Graham\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Peyton Schultz\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08\"},\"headline\":\"NIT champions: UTC men’s basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":812,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Carter Graham\",\"Creating the Mocs Experience\",\"Erkan Kaplanoglu\",\"Guy DeWeese\",\"Honor Huff\",\"Leveraging Our Special Place as Chattanooga\u2019s University\",\"men's basketball\",\"Mocs Learn Mocs Do Mocs Lead\",\"Operating with Excellence\",\"tom griscom\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Athletics\",\"Campus\",\"College of Arts and Sciences\",\"Communication\",\"Community\",\"Events and Entertainment\",\"Faculty and Staff\",\"News\",\"Students\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/\",\"name\":\"NIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08\"},\"description\":\"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":850,\"caption\":\"Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"NIT champions: UTC men’s basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025\",\"description\":\"Official news releases of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogarchive.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08\",\"name\":\"Peyton Schultz\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Peyton Schultz\"},\"url\":\"\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"NIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025","description":"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"NIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025","og_description":"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.","og_url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/","og_site_name":"UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UTChattanooga","article_published_time":"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":850,"url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Peyton Schultz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@UTChattanooga","twitter_site":"@UTChattanooga","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Carter Graham","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/"},"author":{"name":"Peyton Schultz","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08"},"headline":"NIT champions: UTC men’s basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory","datePublished":"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/"},"wordCount":812,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","keywords":["Carter Graham","Creating the Mocs Experience","Erkan Kaplanoglu","Guy DeWeese","Honor Huff","Leveraging Our Special Place as Chattanooga\u2019s University","men's basketball","Mocs Learn Mocs Do Mocs Lead","Operating with Excellence","tom griscom"],"articleSection":["Athletics","Campus","College of Arts and Sciences","Communication","Community","Events and Entertainment","Faculty and Staff","News","Students"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/","url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/","name":"NIT champions: UTC men's basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory | UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","datePublished":"2025-04-04T22:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-04-08T14:51:21+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08"},"description":"UTC faculty, students, alums and members of the Chattanooga community welcomed the men\u2019s basketball after winning the NIT at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","width":1200,"height":850,"caption":"Men\u2019s basketball team members return to McKenzie Arena Friday, Apr. 4, 2025 after winning the NIT tournament in Indianapolis, IN."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/nit-champions-utc-mens-basketball-returns-home-after-thrilling-overtime-victory\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"NIT champions: UTC men’s basketball returns home after thrilling overtime victory"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/","name":"UTC News Archive: Jul 2007 - Oct 2025","description":"Official news releases of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/596aca014ad7f89a2a0b86f7393dbb08","name":"Peyton Schultz","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Peyton Schultz"},"url":""}]}},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Carter Graham","author_link":""},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/files\/2025\/04\/NIT-Champs-25-718.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66911","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2000"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66911"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66911\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67170,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66911\/revisions\/67170"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66911"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66911"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66911"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}