Post Season Journey Begins Again for the Flyers at The Hangar
The Sandhills Community College basketball team begins pursuit of a sixth trip in a row to the NJCAA championship when it hosts the Region 10 tournament, beginning on Friday at The Hangar.
As the No.1 seed, the 13th ranked in Division III Flyers (9-1 conference, 22-7 overall), receive a first round bye into the semi-finals on Saturday. Also receiving a first round bye in the field of six teams is Paul D. Camp CC of Franklin, VA (8-2, 17-4), the No. 11 ranked team in this week's DIII rankings.
Both teams have been on a tear of late. The Flyers have won 12 of their last 13 games. The Hurricanes have won 10 in a row. The teams split their two regular season games.
The action gets underway on Friday with No. 3 seed Patrick and Henry meeting No. 6 Oxford Emory at 5 p.m. followed by No. 4 Mountain Gateway and No. 5 Virginia Peninsula at 7 p.m.
The Flyers will meet the winner of Friday's second game in Saturday's 1 p.m. semi-final. Camp and the first quarterfinal winner meet at 3 p.m. The championship contest is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday with the winner advancing to the Mid-Atlantic District Championship on March 2 in Largo, MD.
That champion will receive an automatic bid to the national tournament at Herkimer College in Herkimer, NY on March 13-16. The Flyers were defeated there by Brookdale CC (NJ) 90-82 in last year's national championship game.
Flyers' Coach Mike Apple feels that his team will have to win both the Region 10 and district tournaments to make it back to the national tournament even though there are at large bids available.
He doesn't take any of the teams lightly even though the Flyers have defeated Mountain Gateway and Virginia Peninsula twice this season. And Patrick Henry had to forfeit four conference games because of an ineligible player, including a win over the Flyers.
"This is a do or die weekend," Apple said on Wednesday. "I don't think with our record and ranking that we have a chance at the national tournament if we were to lose this weekend.
"There is an old adage that it is hard to beat a team three times in a year. We'll have our hands full. I can't say enough about how competitive Patrick Henry and Camp are."
Preparing for Another Post Season Journey
The college tournament experience is going to be new for most members of this season's squad. Only Jamori McDougald, who was named to the all-tournament team at Herkimer last March, Ayden Gittens, Jamal Williams and Chad Kinch saw action in New York. Another, Isaiah Nelson, was a member of the 2022 team that played in Rockford, IL.
"Really just staying focused, for real," is the way Damien Robinson, who has averaged 15.4 points and 12.3 rebounds per game as a freshman, is looking at it. "I'm actually kind of nervous because this is my first time, playing college basketball. I just want to go out and have fun with all my teammates."
Gittens is the team's leading scorer at 17.4 points per game. Kinch scored 15 points and handed out six assists in Saturday's win over Blue Lights. The exact date that last season ended in New York was on the tip of his tongue.
"Every game, coming up, you have to play your hardest," Kinch said. "If you lose, that's the end of your season. We're just trying to get back to March 18. Our bigs are pretty good, they get rebounds, block shots and score. And then we have guards in back of the bigs. It's a pretty well-rounded team."
Apple likes the way his team has been getting ready to meet the upcoming challenges.
"The saying I have posted in the locker room is 'failure to prepare is preparing to fail' and the biggest thing this week is preparation," he said. "I've been very pleased with our guys as far as their preparation."
The Hangar Rocks
Including the overflow crowd for Sophomore Day last Saturday, the Flyers have been backed by some of the largest and most enthusiastic crowds since The Hangar opened at the Dempsey Student Center in 2015.
Tickets will cost $10 per game or an all-tournament ticket will be available for $25.
"It seems to me our crowds build all year, culminating in what we do in February," Apple said. "I think a lot of that has had to do with we've been lucky enough to have region and district tournaments here and they've been very important games.
"I think our guys feed off the atmosphere. What I saw from our Sophomore Day was simply just unbelievable to me. I can't say enough about those McDeeds Creek Middle School cheerleaders. After the game our players not only crossed the court to thank them, but also the team's fans.
"We just had so many people. I'm starting to hear from people in our community that we need a bigger place and that's awesome."
