On Friday night, a team of Division III basketball all-stars will begin its quest to win a $1 million, winner-take-all prize when We Are D3 opens The Basketball Tournament with a first-round game in Wichita, Kansas.
- 9 PM ET: Watch We are D3 in TBT on ESPN U
- Listen to We are D3 Coach Rejniak on the Q-Cast
The Basketball Tournament is a 64-team, single-elimination tournament played across eight regions. We are D3 will play as the lowest seed in the Wichita bracket and take on the top-seeded AfterShocks, a team mostly comprised of former Division I Wichita State players.
We Are D3 is led by Michael Rejniak, who is the team’s head coach and General Manager. Rejniak is the former head coach at SUNY New Paltz who also worked as an assistant at Amherst, Plymouth State, TCNJ and Vassar.
The team returns some of its roster from last season, including Gordon College grad Eric Demers and Western Connecticut State alum DaQuan Brooks. Demers (2020 Honorable Mention All-American) and Brooks (2012 3rd Team All-American) combined for 42 points in the team’s 67-60 opening round loss.
Adam Fravert (UW-Oshkosh), Daniel Rosenbaum (Pomona-Pitzer) and DeVaughn Rucker (Washington U.) all return after logging double-digit minutes last season. Arik Smith (Cal Lutheran), who played two seasons ago, also returns for We are D3.
Two recent All-Americans join We Are D3 as Bobby Hawkinson (New York University) and Jarred Houston (Emerson) make their TBT debut. They are the two tallest players on the roster, which is critical given the size disadvantage that the Division III squad usually faces. We Are D3 was outrebounded 52-30 and outscored 48-14 in the paint last season.
Other newcomers include former North Park guard Jordan Robinson (2017 1st team All-American) who recently played professionally in Kosovo.
Friday night's opponent is a squad of mostly Wichita State alumni, including Shaquille Morris who was a forward on the Shockers team that reached the 2013 Division I Final Four.
We are D3 is looking for its first win after pushing higher seeds in recent years. Last season, We Are D3 lost to Team ALS Challenge, which eventually lost in Wichita regional semifinals.