Chicago, IL - The #8-rankeded Robert Morris Men's Basketball burst out of the gate, then withstood a second-half charge from the #24-ranked Tigers of Olivet Nazarene University (IL) to claim the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship with a 90-74 victory on March 8, 2008, at the Joseph J. Gentile Center in Chicago, IL.

Accurate shooting from beyond the three-point line paid off for the Eagles who hit seven-of-eleven from long range.  The hottest hand belonged to All-Conference First-teamer Andre White (Junior, Zion, IL) who was a perfect 5-for-5 on three-pointers.

Meanwhile, foul trouble limited ONU's three-time All-Conference player Phil French's playing time.  With their leading rebounder on the bench, the Tigers faced an 18-13 half-rebound deficit.  That was another factor in the Eagles' building a 50-30 half-time lead.

The Tigers began the second half much as RMC had the first.  The first three minutes saw ONU put together run that cut into RMC's lead.  That sequence was keyed by a pair of scores in the paint from Tyler Wallenfang and a three-pointer from Ryan Paxson.

RMC's Othyus Jeffers, the CCAC's Player of the Year, responded by taking command in the paint at both ends.  Jeffers, who posted yet another double-double with 25 points and eleven rebounds, scored on a trio of put-backs, two that turned into traditional three-point plays.

The Tigers had another run left, getting within nine points with 6:11 left in the game.  But All-Conference point guard Terry Dunlap (Junior, Chicago, IL) stepped up.  He hit four clutch free throws down the stretch and controlled the ball, while Jeffers teamed with Marcus Hall (Junior, Buffalo, NY) to wear down the Tiger frontline in the paint. They built the Eagles' edge back to fourteen for the 90-74 final.

Jeffers's 25 points led four RMC players in double figures.  Andre White's three-point shooting paid off for a total of 23 points.  Narcus Hall and Terry Dunlap each scored 13.

Dunlap, the conference leader in assists, dished out nine in the game.  He was mainly responsible for the Eagles turning over the ball but four times in the game.

Rashad Mitchell led ONU with 14 points. Tyler Wallenfang had 13.  Phil French and Ryna Paxson each tallied 12.  ONU point guard Josh Bronke had five assists.  French led the Tigers in rebounds with nine.

The win improved the Eagles overall record to 26-3.  ONU falls to 17-14.

This was the fifth straight conference tournament championship for the Eagles who also claimed the regular season title with a 9-1 CCAC record.

While the Eagles have the conference automatic bid earned by the tournament win, Olivet's #24 ranking may be good enough to garner an at-large berth in the Buffalo Funds 2008 NAIA National Championships beginning March 19, 2008, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, MO.