T-Bird (WBB) Drops 3rd Game of Season in Region V Final, Qualifies for Nationals as No. 5 Seed

The T-Birds dropped just their third game of the season 63-61 Saturday, March 15 to McLennan CC at the Region V Championship in Waco, Texas.

NMJC battled throughout the game rallying back from down 14 points in the second quarter to have a chance to tie in the final minute of the game.

"McLennan has a nice team, and they came out with a lot of energy playing on their home court," NMJC women's basketball head coach Austin Mefford said. "We were up one going into the 2nd quarter and we began playing uncharacteristically of our team. We were very emotional and stopped playing together on both ends of the floor in the 2nd. I kept trying to settle them down and we were fortunate halftime came. Then it was an uphill fight till the end where with some fortunate breaks we were in a position to tie it up."

The T-Birds trailed 60-52 with less than 2:30 to go in the game. NMJC used a 7-2 run to pull within three points at the 35 second mark. The Thunderbirds received the ball back with a chance to tie with 17 seconds remaining. Amyah Sutton fumbled the inbound which led to a turnover and a foul. McLennan made 1-of-2 free throws to bring the score to 63-59 with 12 seconds left in the game.

Cacia Antonio drove to the hole and hit the driving layup with five seconds to go making the score 63-61 Highlassies. The T-Birds fouled which led to McLennan missing both free throws and left NMJC with one final shot at winning or tying the game. 

Antonio received the ball went down the lane and was fouled on the shot attempt. The sophomore headed to the line needing both free throws to tie and she missed the first and purposely missed the second which caused time to expire on the loose ball.

Cacia Antonio recorded 22 points and nine rebounds. Pania Davis finished with her 11th double-double of the season scoring 18 points and securing 12 boards.

Forward Amyah Sutton ended the afternoon with seven points and seven rebounds. Jada Graves finished with six rebounds.

The T-Birds shot 2-of-12 from beyond the arc. Fatime Seck hit the only 3-pointers of the day to finish with six points.

"Our outside shooting was definitely a focus in our recruiting last year and we have been much improved all year," Coach Mefford said. "It has made our offense much harder to guard when we're knocking down 3s. We have had games when one person is not hitting but we always have someone step it up and hit a couple to strech the defense. In 2 of our 3 losses on the year (Midland and MCC), we struggled from beyond the arc and in each game only hit 2 3's. We've got some time to get a lot of shots up before heading to Casper and hope to be more consistent there."

The T-Birds shot 21-for-57 (36.8%) from the field, 2-of-12 (16.7%) from the 3-point line, and 17-of-22 (77.3%) from the free throw line. The Thunderbirds held the Highlassies to 38.7% from the field. 

"You always want to be undefeated and perfect, but this group has done a tremendous job so far," Coach Mefford said. "A challenging and perfect non-conference, a share of the WJCAC Championship, and playing in the Region V Championship. The work is not finished, and the ultimate goal still stands in front of us. As a whole on the season, we have put ourselves in a position to be successful at the national tournament."

NMJC drops to 29-3 (12-2) on the year. The T-Birds received an at-large bid to the NJCAA Women's Basketball Championship in Capser, Wyoming on Sunday night. 

The T-Birds will receive a first round bye as the No. 5 seed and then will face the winner of No. 12 Florida Southwestern and No. 21 Itawamba CC on Friday, March 28 at 2:30 p.m. MDT. 

Following the Region V Championships the WJCAC & Region V announced their awards.

Head coach Austin Mefford was WJCAC Co-Coach of the Year for the second straight season. 

Forward Pania Davis was named WJCAC Player of the Year, Region V All-Tournament Team, All-Region V, and WJCAC All-Conference. Cacia Antonio earned Region V All-Tournament Team distinction, All-Region V, and WJCAC All-Conference. Amyah Sutton was the final honoree picking up All-Region V honors and WJCAC All-Conference. 

"For me it means we had good players, and they played well and won games. It's always nice to be coach of the year and means I didn't screw it up too much," Coach Mefford said. "As for the players it was great and well deserved to see Amyah Sutton on this list. She sometimes goes under the radar with all of the accolades that Pania and Cacia get. Cacia and Pania are well deserving, and it was exciting for Pania to get POY."