MONTGOMERY – Four Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) basketball teams are still dancing in March. Coastal Alabama-North (Division II Men), Chattahoochee Valley (Division II Women), Bishop State (Division 1 Men) and Shelton State (Division 1 Women) each earned a berth to their respective National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) tournaments.
Both the Coastal Alabama Community College-North men and the Chattahoochee Valley Community College's (CVCC) women won their respective NJCAA Division II National Championship first-round games on Monday and play again today.
The Coastal Alabama-North men, the 14th seed, play 3rd-seeded Milwaukee Area Tech at 3 p.m. in Danville, Ill.
The Coyotes (25-9) opened the national tournament with an 82-58 victory over Rockland (N.Y.) Community College behind Chimeziri Okeoma's 32 points. Elijah Pippins contributed 16 points, and Bryce Wilkins recorded a double-double with 13 points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
Coastal Alabama-North, led by ACCC Coach of the Year Chuck Taylor, has won 15 of its last 16 games. The Coyotes earned an at-large bid to nationals.
Meanwhile, Chattahoochee Valley Community College's women play No.2 Illinois Central College at 7 p.m. in Hickory, N.C.
The 15th-seeded Lady Pirates beat National Park College 70-53 in Monday's first-round game. Lacey Thomas led CVCC with 20 points, 11 rebounds and three steals, while Carlesia Fields had 15 points and seven rebounds off the bench. London VanArsdale added 13 points for CVCC.
Under coach Joe Richardson, the Lady Pirates (23-6) have won 15 straight games, earning a trip to nationals after winning the ACCC Tournament championship and the NJCAA Gulf South District Championship.
Shelton State's women and Bishop State's men both won respective ACCC Division I Tournament championships over the weekend and learned their national championship seeding on Monday.
Shelton State, which won its 21st ACCC championship with a 74-59 victory over Lawson State, earned the No. 3 seed for the NJCAA Division I National Championship set for March 24-31 at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, La.
The Lady Bucs (29-5) play the Chipola/Northeast Oklahoma A&M winner at nationals on March 26 at 4:45 p.m.
Shelton State, which has won 20 of its last 21 games, advanced to the NJCAA championship game last year – the fifth Final Four appearance under coach Madonna Thompson.
The Bishop State men made history over the weekend, winning the program's first conference tournament championship with a 78-75 victory against Shelton State.
Led by coach Trenton Eager, Bishop State will play Northwest Florida State College on Sunday, March 22 at 8 p.m. in the NJCAA National Championship opener.
All games will be streamed live on the NJCAA Network.