Six decades of slam-dunk success
A look back at the Roadrunners’ unforgettable 2000 national basketball title and the new generation of teams chasing championship dreams.
This story appears in the fall 2025 issue of MSU Denver Magazine.
Roadrunners fans have witnessed a lot of special sports moments over the past six decades. But for sheer exhilaration and historic significance, it might be hard to top the moment when Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Men’s Basketball team won the NCAA Division II national championship for the first time in 2000.
At the start of a new century, the team’s hard work and long hours of training paid off with a 33-4 record and the University’s — and Colorado’ s— first men’s basketball championship. And head coach Mike Dunlap was named National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year. Dunlap, now a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Hall of Fame, remembers the victory like it was yesterday.
“We were the first basketball team to win a national championship in the history of Colorado, period,” Dunlap said. “That’s something that will never be done again.”
Two years later, Dunlap led the team to a second title. In fact, the coach amassed so many victories and accolades during his nine years (1997-2006) at MSU Denver that he is among the most decorated head coaches in Division II men’s basketball history.
Since leaving MSU Denver, Dunlap experienced impressive highs in the NBA, including serving as a Denver Nuggets assistant coach and a coach on the championship-winning Milwaukee Bucks. Currently, he’s the men’s head coach at Colorado Mesa University.
“I respect the innocence of the players and the game at this level,” Dunlap said. “The student-athlete is in a special window, where learning through failure and success can still impact the direction of their lives.”
Dunlap’s mind is an encyclopedia of basketball lore, analytical knowledge and mentoring insights. What advice would he give to a young coach just starting out?
“Hold the mop,” he said. “By which I mean: Be committed to the collective effort and willing to perform any task that benefits the team. Young coaches need to understand the power of process over results. And of course, never, ever stop believing in your dream.”
Reaching for glory in 2024-25
Four teams believing in their dreams are this year’s Women’s Soccer, Softball, Volleyball and Men’s Baseball squads at MSU Denver.
“Every one of these teams made the NCAA Tournament during the 2024-25 season,” said Eric Lansing, MSU Denver’s assistant director of Athletics Communications. “It’s the first time we’ve had four teams make the big tournament since the 2014-15 season, so it’s a great achievement.”
The Women’s Soccer team earned a home playoff game for the first time since 2012, ultimately making it to the semifinals. It also clinched a spot in the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament for the first time in a decade.
The Softball team, meanwhile, earned the third seed in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament before taking its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2016. Five players earned all-conference honors.
While baseball will always throw curveballs, it’s fair to say MSU Denver’s Baseball team is on a heater. With a 23-5 home record and seven players earning all-conference honors, the Roadrunners secured an RMAC Tournament fourth seed.
Despite beating the No. 1-seeded team and earning a spot in the championship, MSU Denver’s baseball team ultimately missed out on the title. But its hot run propelled the team to its third NCAA Tournament in four years.
As if that weren’t prestige enough, three former Roadrunners were part of the 2025 RMAC Hall of Fame class. J.R. Smith, who rose from student assistant to assistant athletic director; Brandon Jefferson, NCAA Division II men’s basketball Player of the Year and first-team All-American in 2013-14; and Debbie Hendricks, who posted a record of 353-148 in 16 years as head volleyball coach, were inducted into the Hall in July.
The greatest success was achieved by the University’s Volleyball team, which went 29-3 with a 14-0 record in the RMAC, winning the RMAC regular-season championship and the RMAC Tournament title. For two weeks, the team was ranked No. 1 in the nation. And the team earned its 24th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s incredible to think that the Volleyball team has now been to the Big Dance for 24 straight seasons,” Lansing said. “It doesn’t look like they’ll be slowing down any time soon. You can never count them out.”
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