NMJC (MBB) Falls in Region V Quarterfinal

The NMJC men's basketball team fell in the first round of the Region V Tournament to McLennan College 64-56 on Wednesday, March 12.

"The guys showed great resilience all game. Playing McLennan on their court in front of their crowd absolutely was a challenge for the team and they competed hard," NMJC men's basketball head coach Luke Mackay said. "The team really did everything well, defended, rebounded, played together, all the things a coach wants. Unfortunately, the wide open shots we had didn't want to fall."

The Thunderbirds shots were ice cold in the first half as they fell behind by 18 points, 29-11 with 6:08 to go in the half. NMJC was springboarded by a Jayden Spearman three-pointer that spearheaded the T-Birds to an 18-5 run to head into the break down 34-29.

NMJC started off hot in the second half. Deuce Benjamin knocked down a three-pointer and converted the 3-point play on the next trip down the basket to give NMJC their first lead, 39-38, since the 19:06 mark of the first half. Armon Jarrard drilled a three-pointer which made the T-Bird advantage 42-38 with 12:16 left in the game. The run to start the second half was 13-4 in favor of NMJC. 

Jayden Spearman connected with a 3-pointer to extend the lead to its largest of the night, 50-45 NMJC with 6:37 to go in the game. 

The Highlanders responded with a 15-0 run that sealed the game. The Thunderbirds went on to fall 64-56 in the Region V quarterfinal to tournament host McLennan CC.   

"The guys did a great job working for each other and had fantastic looks at the basket…the ball just didn't want to go in," Coach Mackay said. "They gave it their all, held McLennan well below their average points and on offense we shared the ball and got great shots. It just wasn't our night in regards to making jump shots."

Armon Jarrard ended the day with a team-high 12 points while Deuce Benjamin added 11 points.

Sophomore guard Amhad Jarrard finished with nine points. Jayden Spearman grabbed 10 rebounds and put up eight points. Center Melian Martinez finished with five points and six boards.

The T-Birds shot 18-for-70 (25%) from the field, 8-of-40 (20%) from the 3-point line, and 12-of-15 (80%) from the charity stripe. The 25% from the field was the lowest field goal percentage for NMJC all season. The Thunderbirds forced 20 turnovers.

"We have seen enough zone to be ready and the guys executed well and for 30 games we were very good at attacking zones," Coach Mackay said. "All the numbers were in our favor. We had over 20 more shots, won the offensive rebounds and turnovers. All year we have been an excellent shooting team with multiple guys capable of knocking down 3's. Unfortunately for us that was that game that most teams experience at least once a season where the ball just didn't want to go in the hoop."

No. 20 NMJC drops to 24-7 (10-6) and will await their fate for nationals to see if they receive an at-large bid to Hutchinson, Kan.