Tipp, however, had other ideas and captured the title with a fourteen-point victory.
The under-18 team captured the gold medal in the Pan American Games last week with a 1-0 victory over Mexico.
The club captured the national title in 1949 with a victory over Borussia Dortmund.
Panama captured the bronze medal with a 75-74 victory over Cuba.
Sweden captured the bronze medal with a 4-1 victory over Germany.
Parma captured the first game with a 1-0 victory.
The Panthers (23-5, 12-3), looking to avenge last month's 63-62 loss to St. John's, can capture their first regular-season conference championship with a victory.
The team went on to capture the national championship in 1910 with a 1-0 victory over Holstein Kiel.
The Celtics, who had been eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs the past two years, can capture the series with a victory on Friday.
But just what is pushing Holmes these days, 17 years after he first captured the title with a victory over Ken Norton?