Rochester, Mn-

The Anoka-Ramsey men's basketball team entered the 2017 NJCAA Division III men's basketball national championship as the #1 seed, but Ron Larson, and his son and assistant coach Rory, knew any of the eight squads participating in the event could end up being the champion.  Unfortunately, that vision turned out to be correct and when the dust cleared, Anoka had to settle for 4th place on the weekend.

Herkimer Community College handed Anoka-Ramsey a 89-76 loss in the third place game on Saturday evening, with the set-back coming on the heels of a 2-point loss the night before to North Lake Community College. 

The Golden Rams end the season with a 28-5 overall record, good for a .848 winning percentage.  Anoka was the top team in the MCAC this season, winning the Southern Division title with a 12-2 overall ledger and steamrolling through the state tournament, winning all three games handily.

Individually, Anoka was paced by Edvonte Copleand and Mamadou Ngom, who averaged around 17.4 points and 15.5 points per game, respectively.  Malik Williams dished out a team-leading 3.6 assists per game, and Ron Larson's squad showed one of the most balanced teams in the Region, with a bench rotation that frequently found any of 8 or 9 Rams contributing in a game.

With the end of the season, Anoka-Ramsey can reflect on the missed chance to win a national title on home-state soil, but for those who saw the Rams roll this season, they clearly earned their place as one of the nation's top NJCAA Division III squads.  

For a wrap-up of the NJCAA Division III tournament, expertly co-hosted by the Rochester Amateur Sports Commission and Rochester CTC, led by interim Athletic Director Brian LaPlante and site director Trevor Magnuson, please be sure to visit this link.