Joe Campoli, 1993 NCAA Champion Men's Basketball team inducted into Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame

ADA — Legendary Ohio Northern head coach Joe Campoli and the ONU 1993 NCAA Champion Men's Basketball team were inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in a ceremony Saturday at the Columbus Convention Center.

Eight of the state's most outstanding coaches, two former NBA star and several record-setting players are among the 19 men and women that make up the 2011 class.

The class includes outstanding teams from Garfield Heights Trinity High School, Ohio Wesleyan University, Ohio Northern University and the University of Dayton.

Campoli coached at Ohio Northern for 30 years, including the last 13 as head men's basketball coach.

He was voted the Division III National Coach of the Year twice (1993, 2001), the Ohio College Coach of the Year twice (1993, 2001) and has won the Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honor four times (1993, 1995, 1999, 2001).

Seven of his players have received the Gregory Award as the league's Most Valuable Player.

He also won the prestigious Vince Lombardi Award, given annually by UNICO, in 2001.

Campoli was 254-101 in his 13 seasons at the helm of the Polar Bear basketball program.

He ranks third all-time in men's basketball coaching victories at ONU and is the fastest coach to reach 100 wins in school history.

In his 17 seasons as associate basketball coach at Ohio Northern University, Campoli helped ONU win 266 games. He served as junior varsity coach from 1975-92 and contributed greatly to the varsity team's success.

Coach Campoli also served as an associate professor in the ONU department of health, physical education and sport studies.

He also served as head coach of the highly successful women's soccer team at ONU. Campoli founded the program in 1988 and compiled a 40-29-3 record in five seasons before stepping down in 1992.

In 1991, he guided the Lady Bears to the Ohio Athletic Conference championship in just the program's fourth season of existence. He was named the 1991 OAC Women's Soccer Coach of the Year.

The 1992-93 Ohio Northern men's basketball team rolled to a 28-2 record and captured the NCAA Division III National Championship under first year head coach Joe Campoli.

The Polar Bears won their first 18 games en route to a 22-1 regular season record and won the Ohio Athletic Conference Regular Season crown with a 17-1 mark.

The Polar Bears opened tournament play with a solid 88-62 victory over Wooster in the first-ever NCAA Tournament game held at the ONU Sports Center.

Northern then traveled to Christopher Newport (Va.), where a snowstorm socked the team in for several days.

Spirits were high, though, as ONU defeated the hosts 83-67 and defeated Calvin (Mich.) 67-56 to reach the NCAA Finals in Buffalo, N.Y.

Against Massachusetts-Dartmouth in the semifinals, Northern led by 11 in the first half, but trailed 60-54 midway through the second half before eventually pulling out a 74-73 victory.

Aaron Madry scored 29 points, Mark Gooden scored 16 and D'Artis Jones added 15 for ONU.

In the finals against Augustana (Ill.), Northern again started off hot, jumping to a 32-18 advantage with five minutes left in the fist half.

The lead was 66-54 with 2:35 left and the Polar Bears withstood a furious rally to win the national title game 71-68.

Jones and Gooden each scored 21 points and Madry added 14 for the victors.

Gooden and Madry were named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team.Gooden was named the OAC Most Valuable Player and Campoli was named the National coach of the Year in 1993.

Jones would go on to be named both the NCAA and OAC Player of the Year in 1995 and Nick Bertke would become the third OAC Player of the Year on the squad, earning the title as a senior in 1996.

Ohio Northern alumnus and long-time Ohio High School Athletic Association official Henry Zaborniak, Jr., is also in the Class of 2011.