T-Birds Set to Face No. 1 seed McLennan CC in Region V Tournament

The Thunderbird men's basketball team will compete as the No. 4 seed representing the WJCAC March 12-15 at the Region V Tournament in Waco, Texas. 

No. 4 NMJC is slated to face No. 1 McLennan in the first round of the Region V Tournament Wednesday, March 12 at 7 p.m. CDT. 

The T-Birds last won the Region V Tournament 12 years ago in 2013.

The T-Birds will earn an automatic bid to Hutchinson with a Region V title. If NMJC does drop a game, they will have to sit and hope for an at-large bid to the national tournament in Kansas. 

The T-Birds finished the WJCAC in fourth place at 10-6 in conference. NMJC was behind Midland College (11-5), Frank Phillips College (11-5), and South Plains College (14-2). 

"The west side of Region V is without question the most difficult league in the country," NMJC men's basketball head coach Luek Mackay said. "The teams have spent time in the top 10 and we closed the season with 5-of-9 teams ranked in the top 25. The SEC of NJCAA basketball where .500 teams in conference is worthy of the national tournament."

The T-Birds went 23-9 in Year 2 of Coach Mackay's tenure. The Thunderbirds have eclipsed the win total by one game in Year 3 and are 24-6 (10-6) in 2024-25. NMJC finished non-conference with a 14-0 record and a No. 2 ranking (highest ranking in program history). 

The T-Birds began conference play at 2-4 but closed the last 10 games with an 8-2 record to edge Odessa College (9-7) by a game for the fourth spot.

"A couple of factors on how we closed so well down the stretch," Coach Mackay said. "The most important being we had a few key players get back to full health. Early in conference play we had 3-4 guys playing through injury and that limited their ability to help the team. On top of that the schedule had us playing on the road versus the most talented teams. Once we got healthy and had a more favorable second half of the conference, we were able to get going."

The Thunderbirds are led by sophomore guards Armon Jarrard and Jannoy Thomas. The duo average 12 and 11 points respectively. Wing Isaiah Alexander keeps the physical presence inside for NMJC grabbing a team-leading 5.2 boards per game.

The lone returner from last season's Region V semifinal team is sophomore guard Deuce Benjamin who averages 9.2 PPG.

The Thunderbirds attempt 29.8 triples per game and have made 301 3-point field goals so far this year. NMJC is riding a four-game winning streak and has beaten the last four top 25 teams they have played. 

"While we are a very talented team with individuals that have great ability, we have really hung our hat on high character young men who play for each other," Coach Mackay said. "The season is such a grind, and we are fortunate to have good guys who as the season wore on became closer rather than fragmenting and that's a huge reason why we increased our win total and finished by winning 8 of 10 including 4 wins over ranked teams."

The Thunderbirds will play McLennan CC, the No. 1 seed out of the north, March 12 at 7 p.m. CDT on their home floor in Waco, Texas.

"McLennan is a very talented and high scoring team," Mackay said. "They have some explosive athletes that can really put pressure on the defense and of course being the host school they have that extra layer of comfort on their court which we will have to overcome."

The T-Birds came into the Region V Tournament last year trying to play spoiler. They were successful in the first round taking down No. 1 seed Collin College 67-57 last year before losing in the semifinal to Clarendon College 111-109 in OT. 

"We have to stay true to who we are and what got us to this point," Coach Mackay said. "Being on their home court we will need to really defend and rebound at a high rate. Any game may on paper can be an upset but with the amount of talent all 8 teams have, anyone can win any game."

NMJC 24-6 (10-6) will play McLennan Community College 25-5 (12-2) in the first round of the Region V Tournament Wednesday, March 12 at 7 p.m. CDT at McLennan College in Waco, Texas.

Info according to the WJCAC website below.

Tickets will be sold at the gate and are: $25 Tournament Pass; $10 Adult Day Pass; and $8 Student & Senior Citizen Day Pass; and $5 per person on Championship Saturday. 

All tournament games will be streamed on Centex Sports Network at www.centexsportsnetwork.com. To view the entire bracket, visit https://njcaaregion5.com/information/championship_info.


Men's Quarterfinals | Wednesday, March 12 | Central
1 p.m. | Temple vs. South Plains
3 p.m. | Weatherford vs. Midland
5 p.m. | Grayson vs. Frank Phillips
7 p.m. | McLennan vs. New Mexico