At the beginning of the 1996-97 men's basketball season, expectations for the Mary Washington College men's basketball team weren't very high - at least from those outside the program. The Eagles, under first-year Head Coach Rod Wood, were picked by the Capital Athletic Conference's coaches to finish in last place prior to the season, based on 1995-96's subpar showing, After the first two games, in which the Eagles lost by close margins to highly-regarded Christopher Newport and Lynchburg, those predictions looked to be prophetic.
Then, IT happened. IT was a 75-67 win against Western Maryland College, the first as a collegiate coach for Coach Wood, Next came a 76-60 win over CAC foe Marymount University, followed by wins over St. Mary's College, Shenandoah University, Catholic University, VillaJulie College, and Gallaudet University,
When the smoke cleared, the Eagles were near the top of the Capital Athletic Conference thanks to a school-record seven game winning streak. The Eagles would go on to finish third in the CAC, behind NCAA Tournament-bound Goucher College and Salisbury State University, with a 15-11 overall record -- the best at
MWC in ten years.
Leading the charge for the Eagles was red shirt senior forward Justin McCarthy (Chantilly, VA), who was honored with All-Conference, All-State, and All-Region honors thanks to his team-leading 17.7 points per game, and 6.7 rebounds per contest. He was also among the national leaders in free-throw percentage, sinking 82.5% of his charity shots. McCarthy became the eighth player in MWC history to record 1,000 points, achieving the total in a 75- 62 win over Frostburg State University.
Also stepping to the forefront for the Eagles in 1996-97 was rising junior forward George Bunch (Lynchburg, VA), who led the Capital Athletic Conference in rebounding, with 10.1 boards per game, placing him in the top 25 nationally in that category, Bunch also contributed 14,1 points per game and was named second team all-conference for his inside play.
Rising junior David Love (Springfield, VA) emerged as one of the top guards in the CAC, averaging 10.9 points and 3.8 assists per game, while burying a team-high 48 three-point baskets, Backcourt mate Burt Burroughs (Virginia Beach, VA) added 6.5 points per game. The Eagles as a team finished among national leaders in free-throw percentage (75.9%) and in rebound margin (+8.9 RPG) , and was the top defensive team in the conference, allowing opponents to shoot just 40.5% and allowing just 65.6 points per contest.