FMCC basketball teams ready for national tournament

Two basketball players posted standing — PHOTOGRAPHER: - -

Kiya Marquez, left, and De’vante Mateo of FMCC were named MVPs in the Region 3 Division III women’s and men’s basketball tournaments. (Courtesy of FMCC)

JOHNSTOWN — It’s been a season unlike any other for the Fulton-Montgomery Community College men’s and women’s basketball teams.

Both claimed Region 3 titles this season and both will be part of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III Tournament this week.

It was the first time in school history that the FMCC men and women won regional titles in the same season.

The Raiders are the first program to sweep the Region 3 Division III titles since Mohawk Valley Community College did it in 2015-16. The women’s team ended the season second in the final National Junior College Athletic Association Division III poll, while the men were ranked sixth.

It was the first regional crown for the FMCC men since 2007, while the women won regionals for the first time since 2004.

With their regional titles in hand, the FMCC teams will head to the national tournaments this week.

The men’s tournament will take place at Herkimer County Community College, while the women’s tourney is set to take place in Rochester, Minn. Both tournaments will take place Wednesday through Saturday.

The FMCC women’s team earned the second seed for the national tournament behind defending national champion Owens.

“I thought the seeding was good. You never know with the quality of teams where you might be,” FMCC women’s basketball coach Kevin Jones said. “Obviously going in, everyone has a championship in mind and that’s what we are shooting for.”

As the No. 2 seed, FMCC earned a first-round bye. The Raiders will face the winner of the Feb. 15 first-round matchup between No. 7 Riverland (21-5) and No. 10 Dallas-Mountain View (12-7), which is scheduled for Wednesday at 5 p.m.

The Raiders will face the winner at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Jones said he’s hoping to use the extra day off to his team’s advantage.

“I think it’s an advantage just being able to see team you’re playing live and not having to win four days in a row,” he said.

FMCC hasn’t played since defeating Onondaga in the Region 3 title game on Feb. 26.

“We might have a slow start, but we’ve overcome adversity all year, so I think we will be fine,” Jones said. “We need to be staying out of early foul trouble, limit turnovers and play great defense.”

The women’s team has posted a 21-0 overall record this season on its way to the Mountain Valley Conference and Region 3 titles. It is FMCC’s third appearance at the national tourney.

As it did during the regular season, FMCC rolled over its opposition in regional play, winning by an average of 29 points. All three games took place on the Raiders’ home floor as they topped Tompkins Cortland in the quarterfinals 82-56 on Feb. 23, North Country in the semifinals 78-56 on Feb. 25 and defending champion Onondaga in the title game on Feb. 26, 84-45.

Kiya Marquez was named the tournament’s most valuable player, while Sarah Emanuel-Norwood was named to the all-tournament team. Marquez averaged 23.3 points per game in the three tournament games, including a 35-point effort in the championship game. Emanuel-Norwood averaged 11.7 points per game for the Raiders in the three tournament contests.

The FMCC women’s squad was well-represented on the all-conference and all-region teams.

Marquez and Andie Gannon were named first-team all-region, while Makenzie Smith was named third-team all-region. Gannon and Marquez also were named first-team all-conference, while Smith and Abby Lombardoni were named to the second team.

Marquez leads FMCC with an average of 19.1 points per game this season, while Lombardoni (17.8), Gannon (16.9) and Smith (16.4) also average double figures.

Mary Ellen Querrie, Alimah Goodwin and Shanna Bliss round out the women’s roster.

It’s the first time in Jones’ 24 seasons as coach that the Raiders have gone through regionals unbeaten.

While Jones is the only coach in the history of the FMCC women’s program, men’s coach E.J. Gallup is in just his second season with the Raiders.

The FMCC men earned the sixth seed for the national tourney. They will face 11th-seeded DuPage (Ill.), which is 20-13 overall, at 6 p.m. in Wednesday’s first-round contest. It is the Raiders’ fourth appearance at the national tourney.

DuPage finished the season on a seven-game winning streak and won the Great Lakes District Championship Title over Lorain County, 84-70.

The Raiders are 20-6 overall and have won 16 of of their last 19 games to finish the season. They defeated Mohawk Valley for the Region III title on Feb.26.

The winner will face third-seeded Brookdale, N.J. (27-3) in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 8 p.m.

“We are happy with the No. 6 seed. For one, when all the dust settled, we have the 12 best teams in the country that are all coming to the national championship tournament and out of those 12 teams we are ranked sixth,” Gallup said. “From where we have come in the last couple years as a program, that is a pretty good feat and something for everyone to be proud of. Secondly, the sixth seed gave us the 6 p.m. time slot for Wednesday’s game, which we like, so hopefully our fans can get out to Herkimer and support my guys.

“There isn’t an easy road or any easy game in this tournament, we are just going to continue on our path of one day at a time, one game at a time and let the chips fall where they may.”

The men’s road to the Region 3 title began with an 87-68 win over North Country at home on Feb. 22 before knocking off defending champion Genesee in the semifinals at Mohawk Valley Community College on Feb. 25 by a 105-98 margin. In the title game on Feb. 26, the Raiders rallied for an 89-82 victory over host Mohawk Valley.

With the win, FMCC improved to 12-1 on the road this season. The Raiders have also won five of their last six games.

Fulton-Montgomery’s De’vante Mateo was named the tournament’s MVP, while Nahjhime Kirton was named to the all-tournament team. Mateo averaged 20.3 points per game in the tournament for FMCC (20-6 overall), while Kirton averaged 21 points in the three tournament wins.

Gallup also was named the Mountain Valley Conference and Region 3 Coach of the Year. Mateo, Kirton and Kennyh Hardeman all were named second-team all-conference, while Hardeman was named second-team all-region. Mateo and Kirton both were named third-team all-region.

Hardeman averaged 18.2 points per game this season for FMCC, while Mateo (16.3 ppg) and Kirton (19.8) also averaged in double figures. Hardeman also averages 11.3 rebounds per game, while Kirton has pulled down an average of 10.2 rebounds per game.

Rounding out the men’s roster are Nick Butler, Jaisan Parker, Jelani Moreno, Jevonny Brown, Aiden Monroe and Ian Holland.

NJCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Tournament

at Herkimer County Community College
First Round
Wednesday, March 15
Game 1: No. 8: Prince George’s (24-4) vs. No. 9 Mohawk Valley (26-3), noon
Game 2: No. 12 Dutchess (17-12) vs. No. 5 Northampton (28-3), 2 p.m.
Game 3: No. 10 Rochester (20-7) vs. No. 7 Butler County (20-4), 4 p.m.
Game 4: No. 11 DuPage (20-13) vs. No. 6 Fulton-Montgomery (20-6)
Quarterfinals
Thursday, March 16
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. No. 1 Sandhills (28-3), 2 p.m.
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. No. 2 Dallas-North Lake (25-6), 4 p.m.
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. No. 3 Brookdale (27-3), 6 p.m.
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. No. 4 Northern Essex (31-1), 8 p.m.
Semifinals
Friday, March 17
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 5 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 7 p.m.
Championship
Saturday, March 18, 5 p.m.
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner

NJCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament

at Rochester Regional Sports Center, Rochester, Minn.
First Round
Wednesday, March 15
Game 1: No. 9 Anoka-Ramsey (20-9) vs. No. 8 Prince George’s (14-8), 1 p.m.
Game 2: No. 5 Minnesota West (27-4) vs. No. 12 Northampton (20-6), 3 p.m.
Game 3: No. 7 Riverland (21-5) vs. No. 10 Dallas-Mountain View (12-7), 5 p.m.
Game 4: No. 6 CC Rhode Island (21-6) vs. No. 11 Onondaga (16-8), 7 p.m.
Quarterfinals
Thursday, March 16
Game 1: Game 1 winner vs. No. 1 Owens (19-5), 3 p.m.
Game 2: Game 2 winner vs. No. 2 Fulton-Montgomery (21-0), 5 p.m.
Game 3: Game 3 winner vs. No. 3 Rochester (24-1), 7 p.m.
Game 4: Game 5 winner vs. No. 4 Monroe-Bronx (24-7), 9 p.m.
Semifinals
Friday, March 17
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 8 p.m.
Championship
Saturday, March 18, 6 p.m.
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner