Men's Basketball

PREVIEW: (6) IHCC VS. (3) ODESSA

PREVIEW: (6) IHCC VS. (3) ODESSA
Posted: Mar 23, 2023
Hutchinson, KS – Sixth-seeded Indian Hills Men's Basketball is set to take on No. 3 seed Odessa College (TX) in the quarterfinal round of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Men's Basketball National Tournament at the Hutchinson Sports Arena Thursday night.
 
DETAILS: 2023 NJCAA DI Men's Basketball National Tournament – Quarterfinals
 
#5 (6) Indian Hills vs. #3 (3) Odessa
 
Thursday, March 24  |  8:00 PM CDT
 
Hutchinson, KS  |  Hutchinson Sports Arena

WATCH LIVE: NJCAA Network

LIVE STATS: Indian Hills vs. Odessa

LIVE AUDIO: GoHillsTV

TICKETS: NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Championship

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: NJCAA Championships

BRACKET: NJCAA DI Men's Basketball National Tournament

WHERE TO WATCH IN OTTUMWA: Godfrey's Alehouse, Morgan's Corner, Courtside Bar & Grill, Indian Hills Formal Lounge (Ottumwa Campus)

STARTING FIVE

  • Indian Hills advanced to Thursday night's quarterfinal matchup after a 20-point win over Ranger College (TX), 88-68. The 20-point win was the fifth-largest victory in national tournament history for the Warriors.
  • Don McHenry led all scorers with 26 points, the fourth-most points by an individual through the first two rounds of the national tournament.
  • Only eight teams remain in the national tournament, including three that Indian Hills competed against during the regular season - No. 1 John A. Logan College (IL), No. 7 Northwest Florida State College, and No. 13 Dodge City Community College. The Warriors went 4-0 against those teams during the year.
  • Five games at this year's national touranment have been decided by 20 points or more, but the Warriors' victory was the only contest in the second round.
  • The Warriors have now won 28 games in a single season for the fifth time under head coach Hank Plona and 20th time in school history.

*Recap: Warriors Drop Ranger, Advance at Hutch

SCOUTING THE WRANGLERS
 
The No. 3 seeded Wranglers entered the national tournament as one of the top teams throughout the majority of the year, consistently in the top-5 of the national rankings. Odessa, like Indian Hills, received one of the eight at-large berths to the national tournament after falling the NJCAA Southwest District Semifinals to Midland College (TX), a team that is also still alive at the national tournament.
  • Odessa is making its 11th all-time appearance at the national tournament, and third-straight trip to Hutch. 
  • The Wranglers narrowly edged ICCAC member and No. 14 seed Southeastern Community College 62-56 in the round of 16 Wednesday night to advance to Thursday's quarterfinal.
  • Odessa is 30-3 on the year and have lost just once in its last 10 matchups.
  • The Wranglers boast just one player averaging double-figures on the year in Kiree Huie's 10.5 points per game, but eight individuals are averaging six points or more. In Wednesday's win over Southeastern, 11 different players contributed in the scoring column.
  • The stingy Odessa defense ranked 15th nationally, and fourth among national tournament teams with 64.6 points allowed per game this year.
  • The Wranglers went 4-2 against three national tournament teams during the regular season and were 19-3 in road/neutral games on the year.
  • Odessa is 2-0 against common opponents with the Warriors this year with wins over Ranger and Southeastern.
  • Head coach Kris Bauman has taken three different teams to the NJCAA National Tournament - Odessa, Garden City Community College, and Lamar Community College. 
SERIES HISTORY
 
The two perennial national powers have a storied history that dates back nearly three decades, including two national tournament matchups. Despite only three previous meetings with the most recent in 1997, Indian Hills and Odessa have its fair share of memorable matchups.
  • The most recent meeting came on January 2, 1998 when the Warriors traveled to the Las Vegas Tournament where Indian Hills knocked off Odessa 74-56 behind 28 points from former NJCAA Player of the Year Pete Mickeal. The Warriors cruised through the tournament with a 3-0 record on its way to the team's second consecutive national title.
  • Indian Hills and Odessa squared off in the 1997 national tournament on March 18, 1997 where the Warriors rallied from a halftime deficit as the No. 1 overall seed to secure a 98-87 victory. The Warriors went on to win their first national championship in school history.
  • The Warriors' first-ever national tournament victory came on March 17, 1993 against Odessa as Belefia Parks poured in 28 points. Indian Hills went on to place fourth overall in the program's first-ever trip to the national tournament.
  • The three mathups vs. Odessa is the most against a single opponent at the national tournament for the Warriors. Indian Hills has played four other opponents twice in Hutchinson.
  • Indian Hills is 8-1 all-time at the national tournament vs. teams from Texas.
WHAT'S NEXT
 
The winner of Thursday night's matchup will advance to the final four of the NJCAA DI Men's Basketall National Tournament at 7:00 PM CDT at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. The team to advance will play the winner of No. 15 Vincennes University (IN) and No. 7 Northwest Florida State.