Mary Washington Secures First Division III Title with Thrilling Buzzer-Beater

On April 5, 2026, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, the University of Mary Washington defeated Emory University. The win decided the NCAA Division III men’s basketball championship on the final play.

The finish came on a desperate possession. Kye Robinson launched a fallaway shot as he fell out of bounds. His attempt missed, but teammate Colin Mitchell grabbed the rebound and scored as time expired. Mitchell sprinted downcourt as teammates celebrated the game-ending basket.

How the game unfolded

Emory had seized control early in the second half. Ethan Fauss and Jair Knight combined to push the Eagles to an eight-point lead three minutes into the half. Mary Washington answered with a 14-2 run that tied the contest and shifted momentum.

With 12 seconds left, Fauss buried a 3-pointer to tie the score. The final possession yielded Robinson’s shot, Mitchell’s rebound, and the winning putback.

Key quotes

Colin Mitchell said the team trusted Robinson to make a play. He called the sequence “right place, right time.”

Robinson admitted the shot was difficult. He called it “definitely the best missed shot of my life.”

Top performers and statistics

• Kye Robinson: 27 points on 12-of-22 shooting, eight rebounds, four assists, four steals.
• Jay Randall: 14 points for Mary Washington.
• Kaden Bates: 10 points for Mary Washington.
• Jair Knight: 24 points for Emory.
• Ethan Fauss: 24 points for Emory, including the game-tying 3 with 12 seconds left.
• Ben Pearce: Emory’s all-time leading scorer, surpassed 2,000 career points previously. He missed his first field-goal attempts before hitting a 3-pointer with 90 seconds left. He was 7-of-11 at the free-throw line.

Season significance and context

The victory gave Mary Washington 30 wins for the season. That total set a program record for victories in a single season.

The Eagles had fallen to Emory in last year’s tournament. This year, Mary Washington eliminated defending champion Trinity in the semifinals.

Mary Washington captured its first Division III national championship after a thrilling buzzer-beater. The decisive finish capped a memorable season for the program.

Report compiled for Filmogaz.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.