Men's basketball came up a little short of making a 4th straight trip to the NJCAA National Tournament when they fell at home Saturday to Southern Arkansas University Tech 99-76 in the Central Plains District Championship game. With the loss, NCMC closed out the season with a region title and a final record of 16-12.
The duo of Donovan Vickers (25 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals) and KJ Stewart (22 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks) for SAU Tech proved too much for the Pirates to overcome. They carried the Rockets to victory and a berth in the NJCAA DII National Tournament in Danville, IL, March 15-19.
Top performers for the Pirates in defeat were Isaiah Ervin (20 points) and Kolten Griffin (18 points). As a team, NCMC shot a solid 40.3% from the field but couldn't find the defensive answers for Tech. The Rockets shot 64.5% while posting the second highest point total against NCMC all season.
