The Beat Goes On – Flyers Back in the National Tournament
Nothing was for certain as the players and coaches of the Sandhills Community College basketball team awaited the start of the NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Selection Show in the Game Room at the Dempsey Student Center on Wednesday afternoon.
The Region 10 regular season and tournament champions missed out on the opportunity to secure one of the eight automatic bids to the 12-team field when they lost to Prince George's CC in the Mid-Atlantic District championship game last Saturday. They arrived on Wednesday hoping to gain one of the four at large bids.
"It was really nerve wracking, especially after last year when we already knew we were the No.1 seed," said sophomore Jamori McDougald who earned all-tournament honors as a member of last year's squad that lost to Brookdale CC (NJ) in the national championship game.
When the Flyers (24-8) were announced as the No. 9 seed, cheers erupted in the room. They are scheduled to meet No. 8 Fulton-Montgomery CC of Johnstown, NY (25-4) at noon next Wednesday at Herkimer College in Herkimer, NY. Also an at large selection, the Raiders were defeated by Herkimer College in the Region 3 tournament. The Flyers were ranked No. 12 and the Raiders No. 7 in the final DIII national rankings of the regular season.
Wednesday's winner is slated to face the No. 1 seed of the tournament, Dallas North Lake (26-4) in a quarterfinal game at 2 p.m. on Thursday. The tournament continues with winners bracket and consolation games, leading up to the championship game at 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 16.
In addition to Dallas North Lake, top four seeded teams with first round byes include No. 2 Northern Essex CC, MA (30-1), No. 3 Herkimer (27-2) and No. 4 Montgomery County, PA (27-1). Ranked No. 1, and undefeated up until a loss in the district game, Brookdale CC (26-1) is the No. 5 seed.
For Flyers' Coach Mike Apple, this is his team's sixth trip in a row to the national tournament and the eighth in his 13 years at Sandhills. The 2012 and 2020 teams won it all. Assistant coaches Tramaine Pride, Daquain Towns and Markell Lotharp were members of the 2012 title team.
"It never gets old, it's exciting and I look forward to it," Apple said. "I don't know the first thing about Fulton-Montgomery so we'll start looking at tape and see what we need to do. We've got our work cut out for us for sure."
Following Wednesday's broadcast the team headed to the gym for a practice. Damien Robinson is one of the freshmen members of the team scheduled to fly from Raleigh-Durham Airport to New York with stops in Baltimore and Syracuse on Monday. The Region 10 Freshman of the Year, will be making his first trip to the Empire State.
"I'm just thinking about how much skill we've got on this team and if we come together, how hard it will be to beat us." he said.
McDougald was asked about his main memory from last year's 90-82 loss to Brookdale in the title game.
"The only memory I have is a bad one when the buzzer went off and we lost the national championship," he said. "I'm ready to go and avenge that."
Tournament games will be broadcast live on the NJCAA Network.
Remembering Philip Olbon
Olbon, a member of the coaching staff on the Flyers' four previous trips to the national tournament, passed away on February 18. A Marine veteran, the native of East Point, GA is survived by his wife Sandra and a son Ben.
"Philip 'PT' Olbon was a huge help to our basketball program for the last 5 years," Apple said. "He was a positive influence with the players and a calming presence for the coaches on the sidelines. PT gave of himself selflessly and his presence will be sorely missed. I want to thank Sandra, his wife, for allowing him to become so involved in our program. He was a gift!"
C. Bergmann