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Class of 2009 Truman Hall of Fame Announced
The 1998-99 Men’s Basketball Team and
Gerald Burditt will be inducted into the Truman
Athletic Hall of Fame during the Alumni and Friends
Banquet/Program, Friday, Oct. 9. The banquet begins
at 5 p.m. with a reception in the Student Union
Building Hub. Dinner will follow at 6 p.m. in the
Georgian Room, and the program will begin in the
Ophelia Parrish Performance Hall at 7:30 p.m.
1998-99 Men’s Basketball team
 The
1998-99 Men’s Basketball Team advanced to the NCAA
Final Four that season after winning their final
eight conference regular season games, three
conference tournament games, with two wins coming in
the final seconds and sweeping through the South
Central Regional Tournament.
The remarkable run began after overcoming a 20-point
halftime deficit to win at the buzzer on Feb. 1, at
Washburn University 67-65. The Bulldogs would close
the regular season with an upset of #1 ranked
Pittsburg State in Pershing Arena by a 75-64 margin.
In the conference tournament, Truman knocked off
Missouri Southern in the opening round in Kirksville
by three, then Cory Parker (’00) silenced the Pitt
State crowed as he rain bowed a jumper in as time
expired giving Truman a 76-74 victory in the
semifinals.
Returning to a jam-packed Pershing Arena, the
Bulldogs, behind two late free throws by Jason
Reinberg (’00), earned the conference trophy and
automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. Reinberg’s
free throws with one second left gave the Bulldogs a
70-68 victory over Northwest Missouri.
In the regional, Truman ended the seasons of
Missouri Western (82-69), host Midwestern State
(81-68) and Abilene Christian (76-69) to advance to
the NCAA Elite Eight in Louisville, Ky. Truman’s
first game in the national quarterfinals may have
been one of the greatest games in the school’s
history. Fighting a pesky St. Rose (N.Y.) team, the
Bulldogs earned a hard-fought 106-101 triple
overtime victory to advance to the final four. The
next night, the Bulldogs fell behind by 24 points to
Metro State (Colo.) but again rallied back in the
second half. However, the Roadrunners were able to
hold on to the 69-65 victory to halt the winning
streak at 15 games and end the Bulldogs season at
26-7.
Members of the squad coached by Regional Coach of
the Year Jack Schrader (’84) and assisted by John
Sloop were: All-American Cory Parker (’00), Academic
All-American Jason Reinberg (’00), Brian Brown
(’01), Jason Ramthun (’00), Andy Guethle (’01, ’03),
Mike Peterson (’02), Jason Ward (’00), Chris Foulk
(’99), Spencer Douglas, AJ Crum (’01), Kyle Eagan
(’01), Moni Fearn (’01), Dusty Bruner (’02), Donnie
Daggett (CONFIRM), Peter Aydt (’01) and Dan Mailath
(’03).
Gerald Burditt ('60, '62) – Men’s Basketball
 Gerald
Burditt ('60, '62) was the second leading scorer for a
Bulldog team that captured the MIAA championship and
advanced to the NCAA small college quarterfinals in
1959-60. Burditt earned first-team all-MIAA honors
averaging 15.1 points per game.
The Bulldogs won the conference championship that
season and won 13 of their last 14 games after
starting the season with a 4-3 record.
Kirksville and Pershing Arena were selected as the
host for the NCAA Southwest Regional, in which
Truman defeated Abilene Christian 79-76 in the
finals. Burditt had 21 points in the game as the
Bulldogs rallied from a six-point deficit midway
through the second half.
The Bulldogs lost to Cornell (Iowa) 83-81 in the
quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament in Evansville,
Ind..
Burditt was previously a two-time second team MIAA
pick under Head Coach Boyd King and was named to the
“Who’s Who in Small College Basketball” following
the 59-60 season.
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