Raiders advance to the Sweet 16 with win over Trinidad State
HUTCHINSON, KS - Northwest Florida State College entered their opening round matchup in the NJCAA National Tournament as consensus favorites to advance into the round of 16. However, the Raiders were weary of a tested, tough Trinidad squad who entered the tournament red hot. Moreover, there was also the lingering concerns of tournament jitters, rust, cold shooting, or anything else that could deter the Raiders. From start to finish, all of those concerns were put to rest. NWF turned in a brilliant offensive performance for the entire 40 minutes to outpace the Trojans 87-77 and move into the Sweet 16.
Once the jump ball was tipped, the Raiders wasted no time in setting the tone for what would be an evening of stellar offensive execution. An alley-oop dunk to Issa Muhammad put Northwest Florida up 2-0 on the game's opening possession and the Raiders never relinquished the lead from that point on.
Offensively, the ball movement, spacing, and aggressiveness were vintage Northwest Florida all game long. The Raiders tallied 18 assists to just 6 turnovers and shot 50% from the field, including 43% from 3-point land. Adding to the "team" theme is the fact that all but two Raiders scored, underscoring the comprehensive player involvement and depth the Raiders displayed against Trinidad.
As well as things went on the offensive end, to Trinidad's credit, the Trojans would not go away. Each time the Raiders would look like they were about to land the knockout blow, Trinidad stacked a few baskets together to trim the NWF margin to 5 or 6 points. Northwest Florida, however, kept their composure after each mini run by Trinidad and eventually made the plays down the stretch to secure the 10 point win.
The Raiders were led in scoring by Deshawndre Washington with 21 points while also grabbing 8 rebounds and dishing 6 assists. Tre Clark and Brennan Rigsby were also major factors for NWF, with Clark scoring 20 points and Rigsby adding 19.
NWF improves to 27-5 overall and will next play the #7-seed Indian Hills on Tuesday at 8:30 pm (CST).
To watch all the tournament action, visit https://www.njcaa.org/network/landing/index.
For more information on Northwest Florida State athletics, visit NWFRaiders.com or follow @NWFRaiders on Twitter.