Two offensive rebounds set up the most impactful shot in Trinity College men’s basketball history.
Trailing by one to top-ranked NYU in the Division 3 national championship game with 23.1 seconds remaining, Trinity needed a successful offensive trip. Senior guard Will Dorion (Needham, Mass.) misfired on a 3-pointer from the left wing, but junior forward Trevor McDonald (Natick, Mass.) corralled the rebound. His putback attempt was swatted away and into the hands of junior guard Drew Lazarre (West Haven, Conn.).
Lazarre found Henry Vetter waiting just in front of the midcourt logo for a kickout 3-pointer, and the star junior let it fly from well beyond the arc, holding his follow-through as he watched his go-ahead 3 fall through the net with 12 seconds remaining.
“I don’t get that shot unless Drew’s right there, Trevor’s right there,” said Vetter. “And that was kind of the whole game. A lot of our guys are menaces on the boards.”
“Those offensive rebounds were unbelievable,” head coach James Cosgrove echoed. “We don’t win without them.”
Trinity came away with a final stop and junior forward Jarrel Okorougo (Stoneham, Mass.) sank two free throws to ice the game as the Bantams earned their first national championship in program history, 64-60, over NYU in Fort Wayne, Ind., on March 22.
“I’m still in disbelief that that happened,” said Dorion, a co-captain. “I’m proud of this group, proud of what we did.”
It was their time. A season ago, the Trinity completed its best season in program history to date.
The Bantams had gone 30-2, won the highly competitive NESCAC tournament championship, and returned to the national D3 tournament for the first time since the 2015-16 season. Once they got to the tournament, the Bantams earned four straight victories to punch their second ever ticket to the Final Four.
But in the national semifinal, Trinity couldn’t keep pace with Trine University, the eventual national champions, falling 66-54.
There was more than enough reason to believe the Bantams would get another crack, though. They returned 10 players from last season’s roster, including three starters. Trinity entered 2024-25 with a highly talented group and a burning desire to win.
“I think a lot of us wanted to work as hard as we could to get back on that stage,” Vetter said. “We knew that nothing was guaranteed, but we kind of just worked all year long to put ourselves in the chance to succeed.”
The Bantams went 30-3, won the NESCAC tournament again, and this time, brought a trophy back to Hartford, Conn. In more ways one, they took advantage of their second chance.
“I just think that’s pretty neat, that these guys are part of a championship back in Connecticut that hasn’t been done besides UConn in a long, long, long time,” Cosgrove said.
Cosgrove was named the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division 3 Coach of the Year on March 26. Cosgrove, in his 15th season leading the program, is the first Trinity coach to earn the award.
Behind the leadership of Cosgrove, Trinity’s success was built on its defense, which held opponents to 57.3 points per game and 35.6 percent shooting from the field, both lowest in the nation.
“That’s all about guys just playing hard,” said Cosgrove. “Sometimes that goes unnoticed, and it shouldn’t, because that’s a huge reason why we’re sitting here.”
NYU, which averaged 80.9 points per game this season, scored 60 in the national championship game, its fewest scored all season. The Violets shot just 42.3 percent.
“Holding a team like that to 60 points. I mean, kind of just goes back to like, defense does win championships,” Dorion said. “It really was our defense that helped us reach that finish line.”
On the offensive end, Vetter led the Bantams by averaging 15.9 points per game on 43.0 percent shooting, 36.5 percent from deep and 88.6 percent from the foul line. He earned a flurry of honors, highlighted by being named the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Vetter was also named to the NABC All-American Third Team, NABC and D3hoops.com All-Region First Team and NESCAC First Team honors.
“I’m grateful to be surrounded by a lot of great players who pushed me in practice and in games,” said Vetter. “I just try to return the favor and work as hard as I can to do what I can.”
Okorougo supplemented Vetter’s production with averages of 12.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. The junior forward led Trinity in scoring in the title game, netting 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting. He was named the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year, D3hoops.com All-American Fifth Team, and Division III National Championship Tournament First Team. Okorougo also joined Vetter on the NABC and D3hoops.com All-Region and NESCAC All-Conference First Team.
Lazarre, whose key rebound set up Vetter’s go-ahead 3-pointer, was Trinity’s third All-Conference selection, earning Second Team honors. He averaged 11.2 points and 6.2 rebounds in 27.2 minutes per game, starting in 32 of 33 contests. A season ago, Lazarre didn’t start any games and saw limited playing time, scoring 3.2 points per game in 12.7 minutes.
“He’s just worked so hard and he’s gotten so much better,” Cosgrove said.
“Coming from last year, the way we lost made me want to take a step further,” said Lazarre.
As good as the feeling of winning a national championship is now, Trinity has no plans of taking its foot off the gas heading into next season.
Cosgrove was asked if he would celebrate and be happy after winning his first national championship.
“I’m gonna be happy for a little bit,” said Cosgrove, before pivoting towards looking forward.
Trinity will return three All-Conference selections — Vetter, Okorougo, and Lazarre — for one more season, in addition to an experienced supporting cast who now know what it takes to reach the mountaintop.
“We’re gonna put a challenge down to have another really, really good year,” Cosgrove said. “We would be selling each other short and selling ourselves short if we didn’t really, really try to have another great year and do some great things again.”
