Hall of Fame
The 1987-88 men’s basketball team captured the hearts of fans around the country 35 years ago during its magical run to the Sweet 16. The Rams made the NCAA tournament as a No. 11 seed and upset Missouri and Syracuse before falling to eventually Final Four participant Duke by one point in a classic battle in New Jersey. Rhody won a program-record 28 games under second-year coach Tom Penders. Not only was the run to the Sweet 16 the first in program history, it was the first for any Atlantic 10 school since the league had transitioned from the Eastern Eight six years earlier. The epitome of Running Rams, the 1987-88 squad is the only one in program history to score more than 3,000 points in a season, averaging 86.5 points per game along the way. The 1997-98 set single-season program records for points, steals, rebounds, assists and made free throws, several of which still stand today.
Team Members
Players - #10 - Silk Owens; #12 - Steve Lane; #14 - Josh Oppenheimer; #15 - Jim Christian; #22 - Tom Garrick; #23 - John Evans; #24 - Kenny Green; #32 - Dennis Tabisz; #33 - Andre Green; #35 - Mergin Sina; #42 - Brien Jenkins; #45 - David Bernsley; #50 - Bonzie Colson; #53 - Jim Eitner; #55 - Brian Walker
Coaches - Tom Penders (head coach); Al Skinner; Jamie Ciampaglio; Rich Pagliuca
Athletic Trainer - John Karney
