Takedown Report

2023 NCAA DI National Championships: By the Numbers

7 min read

by Richard Mann; Photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com

Another NCAA tournament is in the books. 10 champions were crowned, and there were several standout statistical performers. The following looks at those top performers even though not all of them managed to bring home national titles.

Point Differential

Spencer Lee +1.70
Mason Parris +1.30

Things certainly did not end for Spencer Lee (Iowa) as many Hawkeye fans had hoped. Instead of bringing home his fourth NCAA title, Matt Ramos (Purdue) pinned him in the final seconds of the semifinals. The loss sent Lee to a sixth-place finish and effectively ended his collegiate career.

While Ramos had wrestled Lee tough earlier in the season, the loss was still unexpected due to the fact that Lee was wrestling well. He ran through the Big Ten tournament where he outscored his opponents 45 to four and finished with a tournament-high +2.18 point differential. His patented scoring was also on display in the earlier rounds of the NCAA tournament. Prior to the match against Ramos, Lee had outscored his opposition 33 to four.

Even including the loss against Ramos, Lee still scored 2.34 points per minute and allowed only 0.64 points per minute. That leaves him with a +1.70 point differential, which was the highest across the entire tournament. Lee’s ability to score from the top position was basically unmatched during his collegiate career. His 2.34 points per minute was also the highest scoring rate of the entire tournament. This year, he finished with the highest point differential in all three tournaments he entered: the Soldier Salute, the Big Ten tournament and the NCAA tournament.

The second-highest point differential of the tournament belonged to Michigan heavyweight Mason Parris. On his path to the title, he averaged 1.48 points per minute and allowed only 0.18 points per minute. His +1.30 differential was ahead of all other competitors outside of Lee.

Parris had the fifth-highest scoring rate in the field, but he allowed more than one point in only one of his matches. Four of his five opponents, including Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) … rest of story at Rokfin.com/article/13029/2023-NCAA-DI-National-Championships-By-the-Numbers

March 27, 2023 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized