Five seconds left on the clock. Tied 73-73 with Emory University. NCAA Division III championship on the line. 2024 ACHS graduate and point guard of the University of Mary Washington men’s basketball team, Kye Robinson looks for an opportunity to get a basket. He loses balance, throwing the ball hoping to get a lucky basket. The ball skims the net, landing right into the hands of fellow teammate Colin Mitchell. Mitchell goes up for a layup, and with 0.7 seconds left in the game, he scores. The stadium erupts as fans jump to their feet and teammates rush to celebrate Mitchell’s buzzer-beating shot. 

With the win against Emory, the Mary Washington men’s basketball team has achieved their first NCAA Division III title in program history. Robinson, who is a sophomore, scored 27 points in the championship game and was awarded Most Outstanding Player for his crucial role in securing the win. 

Looking back on the moment, Robinson described the final seconds of the close game.

“I got the ball, I slipped, my leg buckled a little bit, and then I was just trying to get it near the rim so somebody else could make a play on it,” said Robinson. “Thankfully someone did, and we won.”

During the last play of the game, as Mary Washington recovered the ball, Robinson’s teammate point guard Ulysses “Chub” Young recalled the close games the team had played in in the past. 

“I feel like it was nothing new to us, as long as we got the best shot, then I was fine with any result,” said Young. 

Robinson grew up in Alexandria, Va., attending George Washington Middle School and ACHS. From an early age, he was active in sports. He started playing football as a young kid, and shortly after fell in love with basketball. 

Around the beginning of COVID-19, when he was in 8th grade, Robinson decided to take the sport to the next level. While he had been playing competitive basketball in travel leagues for a couple of years, he realized he wanted to continue playing in college.

“I feel like when quarantine started, I had time to kind of reflect on everything,” said Robinson. “I definitely wanted to play and take it more seriously. I asked my mom to…buy me a basketball hoop. She believed in me and bought one just to keep me entertained.”

With a new hoop and nothing else to do, Robinson had the opportunity to develop his skills early. As an 8th grader he made the junior varsity team and was able to get a head-start on a high school basketball team.

“I feel like being that young and already getting high school experience was pretty cool,” said Robinson. “As a whole, just the people at Alexandria City, my friends, my family, the teachers, everybody was supportive of me while I was playing there, so it was a cool experience overall.” 

As he grew and moved through high school, Tyrone Sally, Robinson’s head coach on the varsity team, helped him develop and improve his self-assurance on the court.

“Without [Coach Sally], I feel like I would be nowhere near the player I am right now,” said Robinson. “He just gave me confidence, even when I didn’t really believe in myself, he believed in me, so a lot of credit towards him.”

From the moment Robinson joined the varsity team, it seemed apparent to Sally that Robinson was a leader. “Kye led by example. He set the standard in practice and pushed his teammates to elevate their game. He was the kind of teammate every team needs.”

Starting the season as a team with no seniors and mostly new faces, Mary Washington teammates had to learn how to play with each other. During the first few games of the season, the team won their games by close margins, resulting in a collective desire to strengthen their strategies.

“I felt like once the middle of the year and end of the year came around, we were definitely a tight-knit family and very close, and I feel like our chemistry just evolved really nicely,” said Robinson. 

Young, who attended Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Va., echoed Robinson’s sentiments. “I feel like over the course of the season, we just grew closer and closer and the chemistry between everybody on the team. It just got stronger, which propelled us to win the championship.”

Once the tournament started in March, Robinson and Young had to balance practice, games and schoolwork. They said it was a challenge to email professors and make sure they were keeping up with their schoolwork. 

“Before leaving, I just tried to get all my work done so I didn’t have to worry about any missing assignments or rush to complete something throughout the week while I was there,” said Young. “I could just focus on the game ahead and hang with my teammates.”

The team’s non-stop practice paid off, and they made it to the championship final against Emory University. The game took place in the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, which houses the NBA’s Pacers and WNBA’s Indiana Fever. Coach Sally was in attendance.

“I feel like a lot of kids dream of playing in an NBA arena, so it was pretty cool,” said Robinson. “The crowd and our community really showed out in a big way, because we had a fan bus that transported about 300 students and we also had parents, family and alumni there to support us.”

Watching as the final minute of the game ticked by, Sally remembered Robinson’s journey and all the work he had put in up to that moment. “I wasn’t thinking about the pressure, I was thinking about poise. This is what you work for. I knew with the ball in his hands something good was going to happen.”

When the final buzzer had gone off, Robinson knew his dedication to basketball and his team had been worth it.

“The championship means everything to us, just to know all that hard work and all that time away from the family kind of paid off in a way,” said Robinson. 

Following the game, Robinson heard the news he had been waiting for. He had been named Most Outstanding Player for his exceptional performance all tournament. He was the first person in University of Mary Washington history to receive the award. 

“[Being named Most Outstanding Player] felt pretty good because I knew I had been performing well all tournament,” said Robinson.

When asked about his plans for next season, Robinson said he has entered the transfer portal to explore his options but has not closed the door on coming back to Mary Washington.  

Reflecting on his career so far, Robinson stressed the importance of having fun when playing a sport, whether in college or high school. 

“My advice would be to not take the fun out of the game,” said Robinson. “Don’t try to make the game too serious…if you’re not having fun with it, you’re just going to burn out.”