Hutchinson, KS – The stage is set for Indian Hills Men's Basketball's second round matchup at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Men's Basketball Tournament at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. The No. 7 seeded Warriors will take on No. 10 seed Northwest Florida State Tuesday night.
DETAILS: NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Tournament – Second Round
Tuesday, March 15 | 8:30 PM CDT
Watch Live: NJCAA Network ($)
Audio Broadcast: GoHillsTV
Radio: KIIC 96.7 FM - Albia
Live Stats: vs. Northwest Florida State
Tickets: Buy Online
Indian Hills: Roster | Schedule | News | Stats
Northwest Florida State: Roster | Schedule | News | Stats
OPENING TIP
Making their 17th all-time appearance at the NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Tournament in Hutchinson, KS, the Warriors earned the No. 7 seed and a first round bye. Northwest Florida State, who ranks 10th all-time with 34 wins at the national tournament, enters Tuesday night's matchup as the No. 10 seed after receiving an at-large berth out of the South Atlantic (Florida) District.
The two teams enter Tuesday's contest with identical 27-5 records. Indian Hills has won 13 consecutive games, the longest streak in the nation while the Raiders have won three of their last four games.
SIZING UP THE RAIDERS
- The 10th seeded Raiders enter the tournament with two national championships to their name (1996 and 2015) and two runner-up finishes (2012 and 2013).
- Northwest Florida State earned a first-round victory over No. 23 seed Trinidad State (CO) on Monday night, pulling away from the Trojans down the stretch for an 87-77 victory.
- The Raiders own a 2-1 all-time record over Indian Hills. The Warriors edged the Raiders 89-88 in Niceville, FL in 2013. The Raiders have won the last two matchups - an 86-72 decision at the Hellyer Center in 2018 and a 65-64 victory in Niceville, FL in 2019.
- The Raiders are averaging 77.8 points per game while shooting 37.0 percent from three-point range, the 21st best mark in the nation.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
- The ICCAC Player of the Year J'Vonne Hadley leads the charge into the national tournament for the Warriors as the sophomore is averaging 11.0 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest on the year.
- Sophomore Taj Anderson has reached double-figures in three straight games entering the tournament, including a 30-point outburst in the NJCAA North Central District Championship game vs. Dawson.
- Four different players average double-figures for the Raiders, led by Tre Clark's 12.7 points per game on the year.
- Deshawndre Washington paced the Raiders in Monday's opening round game with 21 points on 8-12 shooting.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
Tuesday night's game will send the winner to the quarterfinal round on Thursday at 2:00 PM CDT. The winner will face the winner of No. 2 seed Dodge City (KS) and No. 15 seed Snow (UT) who play at 4:30 PM CDT on Wednesday afternoon.
NJCAA DI MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET
OPENING ROUND EXCITEMENT AT 'HUTCH'
The opening day of action at the NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Tournament provided plenty of excitement as three different games went to overtime.
Moberly Area, the No. 16 seed defeated No. 17 Pearl River 95-89 in overtime while No. 12 Hutchinson survived a scare from No. 21 Connors State 101-98 in overtime. Snow defeated No. 18 Lee (TX) in a thriller, 83-82 in overtime.