#nova southeastern

$500 for a 4 day tourney (Assignment, 2017) [Swimming tournament]

Loss of rights

AD with whom I communicated with was extremely kind and willing to negotiate on payment. Very helpful in making sure my credentials were all set and secured a parking pass for me as well. Gave me good details on who they needed photos of and what the priorities were. Responded to emails/texts/calls very promptly and kept me in the loop as my invoice was processed. Followed up after the event to personally thank me for the coverage I provided, let me know how happy the team was with the photos and where I could see the galleries. Also told me to feel free to use him as a reference if I ever needed one. Awesome experience working with this school's athletic department.

I'll remember this night..... The night that I was there in-person to witness Nova Southeastern winning their 100th consecutive home game. I don't think that I'll likely ever see this happen again in my lifetime.

What Coach Jim Crutchfield has built at Nova Southeastern is truly special and historical. Just a few numbers:

2021-22: 31-1 (31 straight wins, reached the NCAA DII Elite Eight); 2022-23: 36-0 (NCAA DII National Champions); 2023-24: 32-3 (Reached the NCAA DII National Championship Game); 2024-25: 36-1 (NCAA Division II National Champions); 2025-26: Currently 25-1, ranked #1 in NCAA DII & riding a 19-game win streak.

As such, since resuming basketball after cancelling the season due to Covid, Nova Southeastern is currently 160-6, playing in four straight Elite Eights, winning two National Championships, and currently 25-1 and ranked #1 in the country.

The last time that Nova Southeastern lost a game in Rick Case Arena was on February 15, 2020. That's now more than six years ago! After tonight's win over Rollins (who was really tough!), the Sharks have now won 100 consecutive home wins. 100 straight home wins! Just remarkable and historic, as this has never been done in the history of NCAA Division II men's basketball. Ever!

There's not a player on the roster that has ever lost a game at home. Think about that..... Ryan Davis, a senior, has played his entire career for Nova Southeastern, and he's never lost a game at home. He's also never finished a season - in his first three seasons thus far - where he didn't finish the season in the NCAA Division II National Championship game.

It's hard to describe what Coach Crutchfield has built at Nova....... I mean, 160-6 over the course of almost five seasons, playing a tough schedule, conference tournaments, regional tournaments and Elite Eights. It's hard to fathom.... 160-6! 100 consecutive home wins! This stuff has never been done in the history of NCAA Division II basketball, and I think that it's likely that I'll never seee this again in my lifetime.

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The year before Coach Jim Crutchfield arrived at Nova Southeastern, the Sharks were 6-20, and 3-15 in the Sunshine State Conference. At the moment, he's 229-26 at Nova, and 588-87 overall (including his tenure at West Liberty). That's an 89.8% winning percentage at Nova Southeastern, and an overall winning percentage of 87.1%. For perspective, this is the highest career winning percentage in the history of NCAA basketball, at any level, ever. EVER. By any coach (with more than 10 years as a Head Coach).....EVER.

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Aside from the staggering, historical numbers, there's this: These guys - the coaches, players and former players - are a bunch of really good guys. It's easy to root for guys that are so nice. Guys that work so incredibly hard. Guys that share the ball, defend, play with passion. Guys that compete like crazy. Guys that are confident, yet still humble.

Congratulations to Coach Jim Crutchfield, Nick Smith, R.J. Sunahara and all of the current and former players that made tonight a reality.

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Here's the game story, along with an awesome graphic at the top of the story, and some great quotes about this historical win at the bottom of the article:

Tomorrow night (Tuesday, March 3), in Rick Case Arena in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Nova Southestern seeks to become the first team in NCAA Division II history to win 100 consective home games. Tip off against Rollins is set for 7:30 EST.....and yes, I'll be there, in-person. I don't think that I'll likely ever see a moment like this within men's small college basketball again in my lifetime.

The last game that Nova played in the "Shark Tank" (Rick Case Arena is affectionately known as the Shark Tank), they just barely edged Rollins, 75-69, in a game where Rollins held the lead with 1:50 remaining in the game. The Tars are well coached and this team took the Sharks to brink last week, where Nova eventually earned their 99th consecutive win at home.

The last time that Nova Southeastern lost a game in Rick Case Arena was Saturday, February 15, 2020, against Florida Southern. The streak then started on Wednesday, February 26 - Senior Night - against Barry, and then they won a couple more home games, before falling on the road in the Sunshine State Conference Championship game to Florida Southern. The Sharks reached the NCAA DII Tournament, and we set to take on Embry-Riddle (Florida Southern was set to be the host), yet the NCAA Division II Tournament was cancelled, due to Covid-19. The Sharks finished the 2019-20 season with a 23-6 overall record, and then the entire 2020-21 season was cancelled for Nova Southeastern - and the whole Sunshine State Conference - due to Covid-19.

Since then, the Sharks haven't lost at home. In 2021-22, then went 20-0 at home (and 31-1 overall, going undefeated all season, reaching the Elite Eight); in 2022-23, they went 21-0 at home (36-0 overall, winning the NCAA DII National Championship); in 2023-24, they went 20-0 at home (32-3 overall, reaching the NCAA DII National Championship game); in 2024-25, they went 20-0 at home (36-1 overall, winning the NCAA DII National Championship game); thus far in 2025-16, the Sharks are 15-0 at home (24-1 overall).

Notes:

The previous NCAA DII record for consecutive home wins was 80, held by Philadelphia University (now Jefferson University), led by legendary Coach Herb Magee. In talking with Coach Magee, he mentioned that he didn't think that their record would be broken in his lifetime.....and not only has Nova Southeastern broken this remarkable record, but they are 19 home wins past the previous record, on the verge of 100 consecutive home wins.

Coming into this game against Rollins in the opening round of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament, Coach Jim Crutchfield is 587-87 (between his tenure at West Liberty and Nova Southeastern), making him the winningest coach in the history of college basketball, by winning percentage, winning 85.9% of his games for his career. Truly remarkable, and a real coaching legend.

Think about this: There isn't a player on the roster that has ever lost a game at home.

Dallas Graziani, the heartbeat of the Nova Southeastern program, is currently 104-2 while wearing a Nova Southeastern uniform. He's played in two NCAA DII Tournaments, and the Sharks won both National Championships, meaning that he's currently 12-0 in NCAA Tournament games, winning the National Championship in both years. By percentage, he's the winningest player in the history of college basketball at the small college levels (for a player that's played the majority of his career at the small college levels).

Overall, since coming back from the pandemic, Nova Southeastern is currently 159-6. This is not a misprint: The Sharks are 159-6 since coming back from the pandemic.

Tomorrow night, Tuesday, March 3, 2026, could potentially be an incredibly historic night for Nova Southeastern and the game of college basketball......and I'm certainly excited to be there, as I don't think that I'll ever witness such a night again in my lifetime.

Congratulations to Coach Jim Crutchfiled and all of the players and staff that have made this day possible.

It's just incredible and historical what Coach Jim Crutchfield has built at Nova Southeastern. With Saturday's win over Embry-Riddle, Nova Southeastern has now won 90 consecutive games at home (Rick Case Arena), which is an all-time NCAA Division II record.

As we enter the 2025-26 season, there are two point guards with college basketball at the small college levels that have shown to be incredible WINNERS that are entering their senior seasons: Nova Southeastern's Dallas Graziani and the College of Idaho's Samaje Morgan.

Dallas Graziani is a 5'8" point guard that started his career at Nova Southeastern in 2020, and had a really challenging start: their entire season was cancelled due to Covid-19 for the 2020-21, and during the 2021-22 season, Graziani played in 8 games - winning all of them - before he was injured and missed the rest of the season.

During the 2022-23 season, Graziani started every game, led the team in minutes, assists and steals and led the Sharks to a 36-0 record and the NCAA Division II National Championship. He set the school record with 16 assists in a single game, and went for 24 pts, 9 asts and 3 stls in the National Championship Game.

During the 2023-24 season, he transferred to NCAA Division I Samford, where he was the team's starting point guard and led the team to the NCAA Division I NCAA Tournament.

For the 2024-25 season, Graziani transferred back to Nova Southeastern, where he had a sensational season, leading the Sharks to a 36-1 overall record and the program's second NCAA Division II National Championship. He started all 37 games, set the NSU and Sunshine State Conference single season assists record (340), while leading NCAA Division II in assists, assists-per-game (9.2), assist/turnover ratio (5.23), and finished second nationally in steals (93).

Also, Nova Southeastern hasn't lost a home game since before the pandemic, and has now set the NCAA Division II record by winning 84 consecutive games (and counting) at home.

As such, heading into his senior season, Graziani is 80-1 in a Nova Southeastern uniform, winning two NCAA Division II National Championships, and never losing a home game.

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Samaje Morgan is a 5'9" point guard that is the clear leader of the College of Idaho team. While his numbers don't pop off the stat sheet, Morgan just knows how to WIN! In Coach Colby Blaine's system, Morgan just averages 23.4 minutes per game for his career, and he averages 11.8 points and 4.4 assists, while adding 144 steals. Coming into his senior season, he has 1,296 points and 489 assists.

During his freshman season in 2022-23, the Yotes lost their first game, and then rattled off 36 straight wins and captured the NAIA National Championship. As a true freshman, Morgan scored 12 points and had 4 steals in the National Semi-Finals, and then had 13 points in the National Championship game, and earned a spot on the NAIA Tournament Team.

During his sophomore season, Morgan led the Yotes to a 33-3 record and reached the NAIA National Semi-Finals. For the season, he averaged 14.3 points and 3.9 assists in 24.6 minutes per game.

For the 2024-25 season, Samaje Morgan led the College of Idaho to a 35-2 record and the NAIA National Championship. It was a dominating tournament run, winning all six games by double digits and running away with the National Championship with a dominating 93-65 win over Oklahoma Wesleyan. Morgan went 11-15 from the field and finished with 28 points and 3 assists, while holding his opposing point guard to 2 points with 7 turnovers. Samaje Morgan was named as the MVP of the NAIA Tournament, and was named First Team NAIA All American.

EVANSVILLE, IN. - Redemption. One year after falling at the buzzer in the NCAA Division II National Championship game, the second-ranked Nova Southeastern Sharks Men's Basketball team has reached the top of the NCAA Division II men's basketball world, as the Sharks won the program's second national championship, defeating Cal. State Dominguez Hills 74-73 on Saturday evening in the Ford Center.

MJ Iraldi led NSU in the effort, scoring a team-high 27 points and earned tournament Most Outstanding Player honors.

Head Coach Jim Crutchfield has guided NSU to the program's second NCAA Division II National Championship, the 15th national title for the Nova Southeastern Athletics Department. The Sharks tied the program record for wins in a season (36), have the most wins in NCAA Men's Basketball, and closed the season on a 23-game winning streak.

First Half - Ryker Cisarik netted the first four points of the game for the Sharks, as NSU was able to take a quick lead over the Toros. A 9-0 run, which featured points from Dallas Graziani and MJ Iraldi, gave the Sharks a 13-5 lead less than five minutes into the game. Midway through the half, CSUDH was able to eliminate the NSU advantage, tying the game at 20-20. The Toros continued to hold on to an advantage for the remainder of the half, sending the Sharks into the break trailing 42-38.

Despite shooting just 16% from beyond the arc in the first half, the Sharks trailed the Toros by only four points. Tyler Eberhart led all NSU scorers in the opening 20 minutes, totaling 11 points while shooting 5-8 from the field.

Second Half - Eberhart knocked down a three-pointer, following a steal from Graziani, giving NSU some early momentum in the second half. The Sharks and Toros continued to match each other bucket for bucket, before Cisarik finished an and-one opportunity to tie the game 50-50 with 15:29 left in the game. The Sharks seized a bit of momentum, following the Cisarik and-one, rallying for a 10-2 run and taking a 60-52 lead. CSUDH All-American Jeremy Dent-Smith scored six consecutive points for the Toros, tying the game once again at 62-62. Both All-Americans - MJ Iraldi for NSU - in the title game matched each other down the stretch, but the Toros led 71-68 with less than two minutes remaining. Dent-Smith fouled out, sending Cisarik to the free throw line and the forward knocked down both to bring NSU within one. CSUDH missed a go-ahead three-pointer, as Ryan Davis came down with the defensive rebound, before Graziani hit a pair of clutch free throws to give NSU a 72-71 lead with less than 40 seconds left in the game. The Toros reclaimed the lead moments later, but after drawing a foul, Iraldi knocked down a pair of clutch free throws to give NSU a 74-73 lead.

With the opposing team possessing the ball in the final moments once again, the Sharks defense clamped down and forced a pair of missed opportunities; the final horn sounded and for the second time in three seasons, and second time in program history, head coach Jim Crutchfield's Nova Southeastern Sharks won the NCAA Division II national championship.

No. 2 Nova Southeastern has finished their season as NCAA Division II National Champions for the second time in program history. NSU Athletics thanks you for your support throughout the season.

MJ Iraldi: 27 points, 8-16 FG, 10-12 FT, nine rebounds Tyler Eberhart: 14 points, 6-11 FG, six rebounds Dallas Graziani: 13 points, nine assists Ryker Cisarik: nine points