Survive and Advance: Northwest Florida Sneaks Past Florida Southwestern 66-65 in Region VIII Quarterfinals
NICEVILLE, Fla. — It's March, and the Madness is in the air. Or at least it was Wednesday night inside Raider Arena for the FCSAA DI/NJCAA South Atlantic District (Region VIII) Men's Basketball Quarterfinals.
It started with an overtime game between Tallahassee and Daytona State, which saw the Eagles upset the Falcons, advancing them in the tournament. The Second game was also a nail-biter between Chipola and Indian River, which ended as a one-possession game after the Indians led by double-digits. Eastern Florida had no issue facing Hillsborough, defeating the Hawks by 30 points. Finally, there was Northwest Florida and Florida Southwestern, which saw the Raiders sneak away with a 66-65 victory.
This game truly lived up to the hype. The five-seeded Bucs gave the Raiders all they could handle, going toe-to-toe with them for the entirety of the game. The largest lead by either team was no more than eight points. Despite leading for 21 minutes and shooting 51.1% as a unit, the Bucs could not overcome the Raiders prowess. Northwest Florida connected on 43.0% of their shots tonight, but their ferocious rebounding made them stand out.
The Raiders dominated the glass, hauling in 37 rebounds—19 offensive and 18 defensive—giving them a plus-12 edge over the Buccaneers for the game. Because of this, Northwest Florida was able to capitalize on 16 second-chance points—double their opponents' total.
Tajuan Simpkins led the game in scoring, producing 23 points while securing six rebounds and two assists. Tavion Banks was a menace for Florida Southwestern, especially in the second half. The second-year forward tallied 16 points and 12 rebounds, securing a double-double for the game. 12 of Banks' points came in the second half, and he doubled his rebound totals from the first half (6) into the second half.
The Raiders can now look forward to the semifinals when they prepare to face number one seeded Eastern Florida, Friday at 1:00 pm. The Titans were they only team to defeat their opponent by double-digits today after beating Hillsborough 83-53. They're also the only Citrus Conference team remaining in the tournament as the other three teams remaining all reside in the Panhandle (Northwest Florida, Chipola, Tallahassee).
Friday should be another great one. Make sure to follow our Region VIII, X account (Formerly Twitter) @Region8Tourney for all the latest news and updates. You can also visit our tournament website (https://nwfraiders.com/tournaments/Region8Tourney) for brackets, programs, tickets, and more.