#FSWMBB Earns No. 6 Seed In NJCAA National Tournament

#FSWMBB Earns No. 6 Seed In NJCAA National Tournament
Posted: Mar 12, 2018

TOURNAMENT BRACKET (PDF) | TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the first time in program history, the FSW men's basketball team punched its ticket to the National Tournament, earning a No. 6 seed in 2018 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship.

Winning 19 of their last 20 games, the Buccaneers (29-2) will open play on Wednesday, March 21 against the winner of No. 11 Hutchinson CC and No. 22 Cape Fear CC in the second round of the tournament at the Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kansas at 9:00 p.m. ET.

The 71st NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship will take place at the Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kansas, March 19-24, 2018. The 2018 edition of The Tournament marks the 70th consecutive year the event will be hosted by Hutchinson and organized and directed by the American Legion Lysle Rishel Post #68.

The Tournament features the top 24 teams in Division I men's basketball of the NJCAA. The single-elimination seeded bracket is comprised of 16 District Champions, four at-large selections and four 'zone' qualifiers. The top eight seeds receive first-round byes.

Each game of the NJCAA National Tournament will stream live on www.njcaatv.com.

Under the leadership of head coach Marty Richter, the Purple and Aqua, the No. 2 team in the final NJCAA National Poll, finished the 2017-18 regular season 28-1 overall record (12-0 Suncoast Conference). The Buccaneers, ranked No. 2 in the final NJCAA Region 8 Coaches' Poll, earned the program's first Suncoast Conference championship and secured their second consecutive berth to the NJCAA District VIII Championship. The Bucs went 1-1 at the 2018 FCSAA/NJCAA District VIII Men's Basketball Championship, defeating tournament host No. 21 College of Central Florida (97-83), before falling to eventual champion No. 4 Northwest Florida State (86-65).

As a team (through games played on Feb. 26), FSW led the nation in opponents' field goal percentage (36.4 percent) but they also ranked in the top 25 nationally in multiple categories, including blocks per game (7.1; 4th), assists per game (21.3, 6th), steals per game (10.9, 10th), defensive rebounds per game (32.1, 10th), field goal percentage (51.5 percent, 12th), opponents' three-point field goal percentage (29.8 percent, 13th), points per game (92.2; 19th) and total points (2,675, 20th).

NATIONAL TOURNAMENT TICKET INFORMATION
General Admission (Including Standing Room)
 Adults: $13  |  Youth (4-12): $7 

Reserved Evening Sessions (Games after 4:30 p.m.)
 All Ages: $16

All-Session (24 Games) Reserved Tickets 
 $65  

*Free admission for children under 3

Student & Youth Organizations
 All student and youth organizations (Boy Scouts, Big Brothers & Big Sisters, local schools, youth leagues, etc.) inclusive of grades K-12 are able to be admitted to early session games FREE with an adult sponsor. This would apply to all early sessions (games prior to 4:30 p.m.) Monday - Thursday and is subject to the discretion of the American Legion Tournament Committee. Please contact the ticket office in advance at 620-669-9846.

Purchase Options
 Orders can be made by phone 620-669-9846.

 

 

 


FOLLOW THE BUCS
For the latest news on FSW Athletics, log on to FSWBucs.com or stay connected to the Bucs on social media. Follow the Buccaneers on Twitter @FSWBucs, on Instagram @FSWBucs, on Facebook at Facebook.com/FSWBucs and on Snapchat at BucsSnaps.

SUNCOAST CREDIT UNION ARENA
The Buccaneers compete in the brand new Suncoast Credit Union Arena. Suncoast Credit Union Arena is approximately 75,000 square feet and is home to the FSW basketball teams and a student athletic center. The arena seats approximately 3,300 fans and includes six skyboxes, a hospitality event center, competition courts that convert into recreational courts, athletic office space, student, faculty and staff wellness, and an athletic center with a fitness pavilion, men's and women's locker rooms and a weight training area. The arena has two Daktronics displays, on the north and south walls, that each measure 10 feet high by 20 feet wide. Both displays incorporate variable content zoning to each show one large image or they can be divided into multiple windows to show any variety of live video, instant replays, up-to-the-minute statistics, graphics and animations, and sponsorship messages. One-hundred feet of ribbon displays have been installed on the east and west walls of the arena. The ribbons provide the opportunity to supplement the content on the main displays as well as highlight sponsors throughout events.

FLORIDA SOUTHWESTERN
The Florida SouthWestern State College athletic program is a member of the Florida College System Athletic Association (FCSAA) and the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The Buccaneers are one of 25 schools in the NJCAA Region 8 and are one of six schools in the Suncoast Conference. Florida SouthWestern State College currently supports four intercollegiate athletic programs (Baseball, Softball, Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball).

Baseball and Softball began their regular season competition in 2016 at the City of Palms Park in Fort Myers. Located on the Thomas Edison (Lee) Campus in Fort Myers is the brand new Suncoast Credit Union Arena (completed in fall 2016), where FSW's men's and women's basketball teams compete.

THE NJCAA
The movement to form a unique sports association dedicated to America's two-year colleges arose in 1937 when several track and field coaches gathered in Fresno, California. A year later, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rejected a petition from 13 two-year colleges in California to grant their teams and athletes permission to compete at the NCAA Track & Field Championships.

In the spring of 1938, following the NCAA's rejection, those same 13 two-year colleges gathered again in Fresno to organize and form an association that would promote and supervise a national athletics program exclusively for junior and community colleges…and the rest is history.

On May 14, 1938, the first constitution of the National Junior College Athletic Association was accepted by its charter members and the organization held its first national championship event a year later in May 1939.

The NJCAA has played a vital role in collegiate athletics for the past eight decades and continues to be the leader in championing academic and athletic opportunities for student-athletes. This section of the association's website is dedicated to celebrating the NJCAA's rich history and tradition as the national governing body of two-year college athletics.

For more information on the NJCAA log on to www.NJCAA.org. 

THE FCSAA
The Florida College System Activities Association, Incorporated (FCSAA) is a statewide non‑profit corporation regulating, coordinating, and promoting intercollegiate activities in: Athletics, Brain Bowl, Forensics, Music, Student Government, Student Publications, and Theatre.

Membership in the Florida College System Activities Association is open to any of the 28 colleges in the Florida College System. Each member institution is represented in the policy‑making deliberations of the Association through that institution's President or other designated representative. The institutional representatives constitute the FCSAA Presidents Assembly, the ultimate authority in FCSAA.

For more information on the FCSAA log on to www.TheFCSAA.com.  

NJCAA REGION 8 & THE SUNCOAST CONFERENCE
 Member colleges of the NJCAA are allotted to a specific NJCAA Region upon membership to the association. Unlike other collegiate organizations that defer to conference affiliation, the NJCAA guarantees each member college's membership within the regional structure of the association. In most cases, region assignment is based upon geographic location of the college. 

The region structure of the NJCAA is the primary method used by all sponsored sports of the association in determining qualification for national championship tournaments. In certain sports, two or more regions are partnered to form a competition 'district', which is then used for national championship qualification. The organization of districts varies per sport and is formulated every two years under the authority of the association's board of directors. 

FSW is in Region 8 and is joined by ASA College Miami (Region 8 only; non-FCSAA member), Broward College, Chipola College, College of Central Florida, Daytona State College, Eastern Florida State College, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Gulf Coast State College, Hillsborough Community College, Indian River State College, Lake-Sumter State College, Miami Dade College, Northwest Florida State College, Palm Beach State College, Pasco-Hernando State College, Pensacola State College, Polk State College, Santa Fe College, Seminole State College of Florida, South Florida State College, St. Johns River State College, St. Petersburg College, State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota and Tallahassee Community College.

The Bucs are also in the Suncoast Conference with Hillsborough Community College, Polk State College, South Florida State College, St. Petersburg College and State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota. The women's basketball program is also in the Suncoast Conference, but with only three other teams (Hillsborough Community College, St. Petersburg College and Eastern Florida State College).

For more information on Region 8 log on to www.TheFCSAASports.com.