DUBUQUE, Iowa – The No. 6-seed Coe College Kohawks (16-12, 7-9 A-R-C) defeated the No. 4-Loras College Duhawks (17-11, 9-7 A-R-C) 93-86 in the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) tournament championship to earn the program’s first conference tournament title in program history. This is the first time since 2017 that the sixth seed of the tournament was crowned the champions.
 
The Kohawks earned the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Tournament that begins next weekend. The 64-team field will be announced Monday, February 27^th at 12:00 p.m. (CT) on NCAA.com.
 
It was a head-to-head battle from the beginning of the game. The largest lead for the Kohawks was 77-64 and that came with 9:30 minutes left in the second half. Both teams shot over 50.0% from the field with Coe at 63.0% and Loras at 51.6%.
 
The Kohawks had four players in double-figures with TJ Schnurr recording a game-high 36 points while shooting 93.3% 14-for-15 from the field. Cael Schmitt had 19 points, John Steffen with 12 points and Greg Hall with 10 points. Schnurr also led the team with eight rebounds.
 
Head Coach Bryan Martin is leading the Kohawks to their fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament in program history and first under his guidance. The last time the Kohawks were in the national tournament was in 1976 when they lost in the regional championship game.
 
 
Loras had five players in double-figures with Ali Sabet leading them all with 24 points. Tyler Bass had 16 points, Myles Barry with 12 points, and Declan Ciurlik and Jared Pearson with 11 apiece. Bass was one rebound away from recording a double-double, pulling down nine boards.
 
Loras advanced to this year’s title game for the fourth time in program history and for the first time since 2019.