Salem CC men’s basketball schedule complete, women’s schedule close, Marsh adds 2 new assistants

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – The mandate to play home-and-home series within the conference and region has kept Salem CC basketball coach Mike Green from being as creative as he’d have liked with his team’s 2025-26 schedule, but it finally came together even if he’s not altogether happy with it.

With only three games to play with, it didn’t take long. The Mighty Oaks filled the open slots with a spot in a pre-Thanksgiving event where the Mighty Oaks might play a team they beat in last year’s Division III national tournament and instate Division II contender Essex.

Green was hoping to get more games with teams they might see in a return trip to the nationals. As it is, their trip to the Penn Highlands tournament in November gives them a chance to play the Sandhills (N.C.) CC team they beat in the fifth-place game at the nationals.

“We didn’t hunt these,” he said. “I wanted to play everybody that we have a possibility to see in March. I wanted to play those type of teams. I’d much rather start my season off with those type of teams, get tested early.

“It’s different, it’s a completely different schedule. You only get three games. You don’t have as much creativity; you can’t do much with the schedule. Last year we played pretty much who we wanted to play, returned some games and all that, but we just don’t have that wiggle room.”

“It is what it is,” athletics director Bob Hughes said. “That’s way the league has decided to do things and the region decide to do things, so you’ve got to go with it. You can talk about it in meetings and maybe change it down the line, but for now this is the way they’ve scheduled it.”

It also could be a little more balanced. The bulk of the Mighty Oaks’ home games are in the second half of the season making a more comfortable push to the postseason at least.

Last year they played 14 regular-season games at home and 14 on the road, but they played their first seven and 10 of their 14 games before Christmas at home. They didn’t play at home after Feb. 6.

This year they play 11 of their 16 games before Christmas on the road, with nine of their 14 games after the calendar turns and the whole month of February (five games) at home.

The season starts Nov. 6 at Atlantic Cape. The banner commemorating the Mighty Oaks’ district championship and trip to the national tournament will be raised during the home opener Nov. 13.

2025-26 SALEM CC MENS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
OCTOBER
12: x-Prince George’s CC; 18: x-Jamboree (Salem, PGCC, Bucks, Union), site TBA; 23: x-at Alvernia; 28: x-at Penn State-Brandywine).
NOVEMBER
6: at Atlantic Cape, 8: at Delaware County; 13: Bergen; 15: at Pennsylvania Highlands Tournament (SCC, Penn Highlands, Sandhills, Bryant & Stratton); 16: at Penn Highlands Tournament; 18: Ocean; 20: at Passaic; 22: Essex, site TBA; 25: at Camden.
DECEMBER
4: Thaddeus Stevens; 6: at Bergen; 9: RC-Gloucester; 11: at RC-Cumberland; 13: Brookdale; 18: at Ocean; 20: at Sussex.
JANUARY
6: at Union; 10: at RC-Gloucester; 13: RC-Cumberland; 15: at Northampton; 17: Passaic; 22: Atlantic Cape; 27: Philadelphia; 29: at Brookdale; 31: at Luzerne.
FEBRUARY 
3: Montgomery; 5: Harrisburg Area; 10: Union; 12: Camden; 14: Sussex.
(x-scrimmage)

Women: Schedule close, add 2 coaches

The Salem CC women have a little more flexibility in their scheduling and while this year’s slate isn’t quite finished, it does have some of what coach Brian Marsh called “out of the ordinary” elements.

It includes three games with teams from Maryland, including a home-and-home deal with Hagerstown, and a visit from Palm Beach State, a JUCO Division I program from Florida on a three-game Northern swing that includes games at Raritan Valley and Harcum.

“I always try to say I recruit nationally; it’s kind of nice to play some teams that aren’t within driving distance,” Marsh said. “I want to play a lot of different teams. I want to expose my players to a lot of different players. Obviously, when you’re playing the same 18 games you start to see the same type of programs, so it’s just a totally different program that we have no idea about.

“I think it’s interesting playing a lot of different players, a lot of different coaches and see where we stack up with these tier players. We’re building this program and we’re trying to get this team where we want it to go. I don’t want to turn down anybody to play.”

The women open their season against Hagerstown (Nov. 4), then travel to a Delaware County team (Nov. 8) reviving its program after a five-year pause. They hope to add another game or two before the schedule is completed.

Before opening the season, the Mighty Oaks have scrimmages against Penn State-Brandywine and St. Elizabeth (with 2024-25 Mighty Oaks minutes leader Jakayla Jenkins).

Marsh has brought on two new assistants since the end of last season – Jeremy Jeanne and Kayla Chambliss. Jeanne is the former Delaware Military Academy head coach and athletics director. Chambliss, a Delaware grad, previously coached at Lincoln and Wilmington universities.

They join Kiara Eubanks, Garret Sample and Thomas Stanley on the staff.

“I’m just real excited to have a ‘real staff,’ Marsh said. “My first year I had one assistant coach. The second year I had two assistant coaches and now I’m up to (three assistants and two volunteers), which is really nice.

“It’s so much easier in practice the more coaches you have. Like last year you’re trying to teach something and people are moving around. Now you have more coaches who can kind of pull people aside and handle it.

2025-26 SALEM CC WOMENS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
OCTOBER
23: x-Penn State-Brandywine; 30: x-St. Elizabeth.
NOVEMBER
4: Hagerstown; 8: at Delaware County; 18: at Mercer; 20: Palm Beach State; 22: at Essex; 25: at Delaware Tech.
DECEMBER
2: Union; 4: at Bucks; 6: at Raritan Valley; 9: Morris; 11: RC-Cumberland; 13; Lackawanna; 20: at Cecil.
JANUARY
10: at RC-Gloucester; 12: at Hagerstown; 15: Harcum; 17: Middlesex; 20: Mercer; 24: at Lackawanna; 27: Delaware Tech; 31: Raritan Valley.
FEBRUARY
3: at Union; 7: at Middlesex; 10: at Morris; 14: Essex; 17: at Harcum.
(x-scrimmage)

Green, Mighty Oaks restock roster, mold an athletic team ‘geared’ for the nationals looking to create its own legacy

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT — Mike Green looks like a guy who knows something and can’t wait to spring it on folks.

The Salem CC basketball coach had that same feeling last year, but had to wait until the calendar turned to turn it all loose – with historic results. 

His instincts proved right and with the emergence of three second-semester eligibles the Mighty Oaks soared to their first-ever JUCO district championship and a top five finish in the national tournament.

This year, with virtually an entire new roster – such is the churn in junior college basketball – and without some of the elements that made last season special, the third-year Salem coach feels even better about the product he can put on the court next winter.

And this time he can put it all on the floor without having to hold anything back.

“I’m high on all these kids,” Green said after one of the team’s recent summer workouts. “I think this team is more talented than last year, but that doesn’t mean anything. 

“We got out to the nationals (last year) and saw parts that we needed (and) we picked them up. But it’s a long road before you even get to nationals. Last year let us know we’ve got to turn it up even more. I think this team is more geared for nationals, but you’ve got to get there. You’ve got to take care of all the stuff in between. Brand new team, brand new year.”

The Mighty Oaks return only three players from last year’s 26-8 team that won three games in the national tournament In Herkimer, N.Y., and in some ways Green is OK with that because he sees as his job to get his players to the next level as quickly as possible.

To replenish the roster Green went back to his roots, digging deep into Philadelphia and Delaware to steal players either overlooked in the process or late bloomers and even snatching others away from programs too slow to pull the trigger.

“Our town, Philadelphia, picked up on (their vision) big time,” Green said. “We promoted it well. It’s a thing now. Salem is a thing now. We did more turning guys down than anything.”

There are 10 newcomers in total. Some even came over from region rivals.

Kamari Brasher played five games at Northampton last year, going for a double-double in his college debut. Nyeem Johnson, a 6-3 guard perhaps the biggest catch of the signing class, averaged 14.9 points in 15 second-semester games for Montgomery County CC last year. He scored 15 points in 32 minutes in the Feb. 4 win over Salem that was the Mighty Oaks’ last loss before the national tournament, but didn’t play in the district championship game Salem won by eight.

Johnson already has two Division I offers – Cal State-Bakersfield (which showed interest early last year in Jyheim Spencer) and Louisiana Tech. Naseem Wright is another projected Division I talent.

“Seeing their success, I only plan to continue that,” Johnson said. “Coming in, I’ve seen the type of team they are. They play fast, they play hard, everybody is talented. This is a way more talented team, so I plan to win everything.”

Now that he’s here, he’s all in with the Mighty Oaks.

“It’s all love,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s no bad blood or anything (when the Mighty Oaks face Montco again). I just plan to step on the court and do what I do.”

The Mighty Oaks are expected to raise their district championship/national tournament banner before their Nov. 13 game against Bergen CC. They’re also expected to unveil a new set of green road uniforms, designed by Green, during their picture day.

“The talent level is high,” Green said. “Now, we just have to get these guys to buy in like we did last year and get them trusting each other.”

SALEM CC BASKETBALL SIGNEES
Lenar Anderson, 6-2 SG, Wilmington, Del. (McKean)
Kamari Brasher, 6-5 F, Roslyn, Pa. (Abington/Northampton)
Zy’Aire Gibson, 6-3 SG, New Castle, Del. (William Penn)
Paul Glants, 6-4 G, Abington (Abington)
Nayeem Johnson, 6-3 G, Philadelphia (CMS/E. Stroudsburg/Montco CC)
Saadi Lee, 6-0 PG, Philadelphia (West Catholic)
Jarrell Little, 6-3 G, Philadelphia (Dobbins)
Taavi Mateen, 6-3 G, Philadelphia (Cheltenham/Wood/Camden)
Idris Rines, 6-6 F, Upper Dublin (Upper Dublin)
Quadeair Smith, 6-4 F, Philadelphia (Audenried)
Nasseem Wright, 6-6 SG, Philadelphia (Lincoln/Girard)

SALEM CC RETURNEES
Xavier Brewington, PG, 34 GP, 10.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 45-145 3FG, 47 steals, 99 assists
Julian Jones, PG, 12 GP (inj.), 3.4 ppg, 21 assists
Stefan Phillips, F-C, 27 GP, 5.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 45-73 FG, 45-51 FT

Photo: Salem CC basketball coach Mike Green talks with his team at the end of a recent summer workout.

Mighty Oaks close historic season with 77-75 win over Sandhills for fifth place in JUCO Division III national tournament; Taylor named all-tournament

JUCO DIVISION III CHAMPIONSHIP
At Herkimer, N.Y.
Fifth-place game
(10) Salem CC 77, (4) Sandhills CC 75
Third-place game
(9) Dallas Richland 86, (3) Minnesota State 69
Championship game
(2) Mohawk Valley 58, (5) Herkimer 51

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

HERKIMER, N.Y. – The final game of an historic year went down to the wire and the Salem CC prevailed, bringing a joyous end to the winningest season in the history of the men’s basketball program.

A.J. Jones hit a free throw with 9.9 seconds left to give them a two-point lead and the Mighty Oaks survived two potential game-tying shots at the basket to get past Sandhills (N.C.) CC 77-75 Saturday to claim fifth place in the NJCAA Division III national tournament.

The tenth-seeded Mighty Oaks (26-8) knocked off the seventh, sixth and, finally, fourth seeds in their first-ever national tournament appearance.

“At the end of the year there are only a couple of teams that leave a winner,” Mighty Oaks coach Mike Green said. “We had an opportunity to leave a winner, so we won out. Everybody here who is leaving, they won their last junior college game, so that’s good. That feels really good.”

“Top five in the country. We can say that now,” sophomore guard Akeem Taylor said. “This is definitely a big win. I feel like every win we had in this tournament was a big win because every game was history for the school and I feel like they’ll always remember this because it’s the start of a new culture here at Salem.”

Taylor was named to the all-tournament team after scoring 21 points, grabbing a career-high 15 rebounds and dealing six assists against the Flyers (28-8), who also were in their first-ever national tournament appearance. In the four tournament games, the 6-4 sophomore guard from Chester had 78 points, 37 rebounds and 17 assists.

Because of some caveat of not playing in 80 percent of the Mighty Oaks’ games – he became eligible in January and played 80 percent of the games he was eligible – Taylor wasn’t even considered for the All-Region 19 team. But he was named MVP of the Region 19/North Atlantic District B Tournament and made the national tournament all-star team.

“Before the game we thought I already had it locked in, but they said it was questionable,” Taylor said. “Before the game my goal was to dominate and I feel like I did well today.”

While Taylor was the only Salem player to make the all-tournament team, Tamir Powell and Jyheim Spencer also had big games in what likely will be their final games in a Salem uniform. Powell had 20 points – 19 in the second half – while Spencer had 12 points, 21 rebounds and three blocked shots. The single-game tournament record for rebounds is 28.

“It was the last game of JUCO and I was trying to set the tone for the team for next year,” Spencer said. 

The Mighty Oaks scored their biggest win in school history with their typical second-half surge and despite another tough game from behind the arc. They were 8-for-34 from 3-point range in the game, but at one point were only 2-for-20. They were just 1-of-17 in the first half. Had they just hit at their season clip they would have been leading by double digits instead of being down by three at halftime and sweating it out down the stretch.

Green refused to blame the shooting struggles on tired legs from playing four grueling games in four days.

“We’re not making any excuses, we just missed shots,” he said. “But our guys hit them when they mattered the most. Teams look at our percentage and try to zone us, but I know better. Those guys can shoot the ball. It’s just about taking the right shots.”

The Mighty Oaks were 4-for-26 from behind the arc with less than five minutes to play and trailed by four. Then all of a sudden they found the range.

Josh Ramos, 0-for-5 at the time in the game and 4-for-20 in the tournament, hit back-to-back 3s to draw them within one and then tie the game 62-62 with 3:26 to go. Powell hit one and then Ramos hit another from the left corner with 54.9 seconds left to cap an 8-0 rally that put Salem up for good 72-69.

“We were definitely tired coming up, we didn’t have any legs,” Ramos said. “But at halftime they told us to lock in, there are bigger things to worry about, things to finish the game, then – boom – we came out and shot the thing.

“I knew if it came to me I was ready for it. I wanted it to come to me and when it came to me I let it fly.”

Right after Ramos’ go-ahead 3, the Mighty Oaks forced Sandhills into a turnover, but the Flyers got it right back when Taylor couldn’t get the ball inbounds. Although it looked bad at the time, Taylor accepted it hoping to get a stop on the ensuing play instead of throwing it away.

That’s what happened. Taylor blocked Sandhills Damien Robinson from behind and grabbed the rebound, but the officials called him for a flagrant foul after checking the monitor. Zack Noel made one of the two free throws to make it 72-70 and this time on the inbounds play Taylor threw a baseball pass to Spencer, who finished it off with a resounding dunk.

“I saw the way they were guarding (the inbounds), so I saw it from the start,” Taylor said. “Once (Spencer) went, I threw it. I was scared to throw it; that was probably one of the first times I was that nervous. But I threw it and when I saw him catch it I knew it was dunk.”

“I wanted to make a statement,” Spencer said.

It still wasn’t over. Kendall Smith hit three free throws with 12.8 seconds left to make it 76-75. Spencer briefly lost the handle on the inbounds play, but got it to Jones, who was immediately fouled by Smith at 9.9. Jones made the second of his two free throws to make it a two-point game.

Green declined to outline the final defensive sequence, but the Mighty Oaks certainly didn’t want to lose the game on a 3. They chased the Flyers off the 3-point line to make them take a tough mid-range jumper and succeeded. Isaiah Upchurch, 1-of-9 from the floor at the time, took the initial shot from just inside the arc, launching it with 2.8 seconds left.

The ball caromed off the back iron and Robinson flew in over Spencer shoulder for a tip, but the flying Flyer got blocked by the rim with sixth-tenths of a second left and Spencer swatted the rebound back as the horn sounded.

“I was just hoping for us not to foul,” Powell said. “I wasn’t worrying about their shot going in. I knew we would stay inside them – we were playing good defense – I just hoped we didn’t foul. As long as we didn’t foul I knew we were  good and they missed the shot like I thought so.”
 
The Mighty Oaks checked a lot of boxes this season. They had their winningest season in school history. They made their first region tournament appearance since 2022. They won their first district title to make their first national tournament appearance. They picked up their first national tournament win. They also had the district MVP, region/district Coach of the Year and an all-tournament pick at the nationals.

“Amazing year, amazing, big-time year,” Green said. “The guys came together and made it happen. I think we have a pretty good team coming in next year, but this is uncharted territory. It’ll be a disservice to the kids who come in next year to try to do the same thing. That was amazing.”

ACORNS: The Mighty Oaks were 31.5-percent 3-point shooters entering the tournament, but were just 26-for-104 (.250) in their four games here … They were down two players as Tyrese Fortune (wrist) and Stefan Phillips (broken nose) were out with injuries … A.J. Jones started in Fortune’s spot. It was his third start of the year and first since Feb. 6. He played 26 minutes, giving the Mighty Oaks three points, four rebounds, three assists … The Mighty Oaks finished the season 14th in scoring (84.4) and 21st in scoring defense (72.1) … If they played enough games to qualify Taylor would finish 18th in Division III in scoring and Spencer would finish second in rebounding … Team officials are hoping to have a signing ceremony for the Mighty Oaks moving on to the next level later this spring. So far, only Rodney Shelton has committed (Harris-Stowe).

SALEM CC 77, SANDHILLS CC 75
SALEM CC (26-8) – Tamir Powell 5-16 7-8 20, A.J. Jones 0-5 3-5 3, Xavier Brewington 2-7 0-0 4, Akeem Taylor 8-18 4-4 21, Jyheim Spencer 4-6 4-6 12, Dontarius Jones 2-4 0-0 5, Tivon Woolford 0-4 0-0 0, Josh Ramos 3-11 0-0 9, Rodney Shelton 0-0 0-0 0, Tajee Jordan 1-1 1-2 3. Totals 25-72 19-25 77.
SANDHILLS CC (28-8) – Kevin Gentry 2-5 0-0 4, Mike Fee 2-4 0-0 4, Isaiah Upchurch 1-10 4-6 6, Damien Robinson 8-18 4-4 21, Zack Noel 2-9 2-4 6, Kendall Smith 1-6 6-9 8, Mylon Campbell 5-13 1-2 11, Jacob Grantham 0-0 0-0 0, Nylikk Throutman 6-10 0-1 13, Amarie Liburn 0-3 0-0 0, Xavion White 0–1 2-2 2. Total 27-79 19-28 75.

3-point goals: Salem 8-34 (Powell 3-10, A. Jones 0-2, Brewington 0-4, Taylor 1-3, D. Jones 1-2, Woolford 0-3, Ramos 3-10); Sandhills 2-3 (Upchurch 0-2, Robinson 1-1, Troutman 1-1). Rebounds: Salem 54 (Spencer 21, Taylor 15); Sandhills 50 (Noel 15, Robinson 7). Technical fouls: Salem coach Green. Total fouls: Salem 21, Sandhills 17. Officials: Tim Seil, Dan Viscariello, Ryan Schupp.

‘Get Back Gang’ lives to play another day; Powell rediscovers shot, helps Salem CC take down Union 72-65 to lay claim as Region 19 champion, reach JUCO Division III fifth-place game

JUCO DIVISION III TOURNAMENT
At Herkimer (N.Y.) College
Friday’s Games
Consolation Bracket
Sandhills 78, Dutchess 77
Salem CC 72, Union 65
Championship Semifinals
Herkimer 72, Dallas Richland 59
Mohawk Valley 92, Minnesota State-Fergus Falls 90
Saturday’s Games
Fifth-place game
(10) Salem vs. (4) Sandhills, noon
Third-place game
(9) Dallas Richland vs. (3) Minnesota State, 2 p.m.
Championship Game
(5) Herkimer vs. (2) Mohawk Valley, 5 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

HERKIMER, N.Y. — The Salem CC basketball team responded to coach Mike Green’s challenge after a dreadful Elite 8 game the day before, Tamir Powell found his shot and the Mighty Oaks lived to play the final day of the JUCO Division III national tournament by taking out Region 19 rival Union Friday, 72-65.

The Mighty Oaks (25-8) will now play Sandhills (N.C.) CC for fifth place Saturday at noon. It’ll be their fourth game in four days.

The win avenged a 10-point regular-season loss to the Owls and had the Mighty Oaks claiming the Region 19 championship since the teams didn’t meet after winning their respective Region 19/North Atlantic District tournament brackets at Northampton.

They’ve now won four games against teams that beat them earlier in the season (Camden, Philadelphia, Montgomery County and Union) — the last three in the playoffs — earning the nickname “The Getback Gang.”

The Mighty Oaks played so much better in so many areas Friday than they did in the Elite 8 game. Playing with the heart and energy that was missing against Mohawk Valley, they outrebounded the bigger Owls, moved the ball around better (15 assists), created turnovers and made shots. If they were sharper from 3-point range they would have won by a wider margin.

“We challenged them and they answered the bell,” Green said. “I feel like we laid down yesterday. Mohawk Valley is a really good team, but I don’t think they’re 20 points better than us. I think we laid down and we just challenged them. I let them know they’ve got to respond and I think they responded today.”

The game followed the early script of the regular-season game between the teams with Salem again opening an early lead. Only this time they kept it up and never lost the lead after Jyheim Spencer put them up 23-22 with 5:14 left in the first half.

They got the biggest boost from Powell. The freshman from Philadelphia has struggled mightily in the national tournament with his shot. He was just 1-for-13 against Mohawk Valley and 2-for-26 through the first five halves of the tournament. His two makes were a goaltending basket Thursday and a layup in the first half Friday. He was 0-for-11 from 3 after hitting at a 36 percent during the season.

But he kept playing big minutes – he got 27 Friday – because he continued to guard and do the things that don’t necessarily show up in the box score.

His shot came around in the second half against the Owls. He opened Salem’s scoring in the half with back-to-back 3-pointers after Union tied the game at 32, giving the Mighty Oaks the cushion they maintained the rest of the game. The Owls brought it back to within four later in the half, then Powell stretched the lead back out with a conventional three-point play.

He finished with a team-high 17 points, 14 in the second half. He was 4-for-12 from the field in the half (5-of-19 for the game), but hit three from behind the arc.

“That game yesterday hurt him and I knew he was going to respond,” Green said. “He’s a Philly kid; he’s tough. He still didn’t have a great shooting night, but he hit the ones when we went on our run.”

Powell had been shooting it so bad up here he really wanted to feel like finding some corner to crawl into and disappear, but the shooter in him told him to keep firing.
 
He’d gone through shooting slumps before in high school and travel ball and he’s always snapped out of it. With the help of his teammates, particularly guard A.J. Jones, and family back home offering encouragement, he knew he would again.

“I feel like all I had to see was one go in to get me rolling and I feel like that’s what happened,” a ‘very relieved’ Powell said. “I knew the shots were going to come, that’s why I didn’t stop shooting; 1-for-20, 1-for-13, just keep shooting. I know my teammates and my coaches they want me to shoot it, they’ve got my back, I’m going to let it go.”

The Owls scored the first two baskets of the second half to tie the game. Powell squared up in the right corner and answered with his first 3 since the district championship game March 1. He got it the next trip down the floor and did it again. Akeem Taylor capped the flurry with a three-point play.

“What went through my mind at that instant is it’s on, we’re really not losing this game,” Powell said. “I don’t know what it is about the second half with us, we just come out on fire. I think it’s our halftime talk.”

Taylor continued to be the Mighty Oaks most valuable player and with a reasonable final game for the Saturday will likely land a spot on the all-tournament team. He had 16 points and nine rebounds Friday. Xavier Brewington had 10 points after going scoreless against Mohawk Valley. Spencer had six points and 11 rebounds.

ACORNS: By the time the Mighty Oaks wrap up the tournament, they will have played teams from six different states this season (seven counting scrimmages) … Freshman center Stefan Phillips suffered a broken nose after taking an elbow to the face late in the second half. He is doubtful for the final game of the season … Tyrese Fortune has also struggled with his shot this tournament (1-for-15), but he’s been plagued by a right wrist injury he sustained in the team’s final on-campus practice … Dutchess CC, the No. 1 seed in the tournament who bowed out in two games, is interested playing the Mighty Oaks next season … The championship game will be a neighborhood rivalry between Herkimer and Mohawk Valley. The schools are 15 miles apart.

SALEM CC 72, UNION 65
SALEM CC (25-8): Tamir Powell 5-19 4-7 17, Tyrese Fortune 1-6 3-5 5, Xavier Brewington 3-11 2-2 10, Akeem Taylor 6-14 4-5 16, Jyheim Spencer 3-5 0-1 6, Dontarius Jones 2-3 0-0 5, A.J. Jones 1-3 4-6 6, Tivon Woolford 0-0 0-0 0, Josh Ramos 1-3 0-0 3, Rodney Shelton 1-2 0-0 2, Tajee Jordan 0-0 0-0 0, Stefan Phillips 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 24-67 17-26 72.
UNION (24-6): David McKnight 5-10 2-2 14, Nicolas Acosta 1-4 0-0 2, Joseph Gargiulo 4-9 1-4 9, Kanye Brown 0-0 0-0 0, Jeremiah Saint Jean 1-2 0-0 2, Jayden Bates 4-11 0-0 8, Devin Geiger 6-14 10-10 22, Craig West 1-3 0-1 3, Amaad Kennedy 2-2 1-1 5. Totals 24-55 14-18 65.

‘Special performances’ by Woolford, Jones spark second-half rally that carries Salem CC to its first ever win in the national tournament, faces second-seeded Mohawk Valley next in Elite 8

JUCO DIVISION III TOURNAMENT
First-round Games
(9) Dallas-Richland 73, (8) Northern Essex 68
(5) Herkimer 81, (12) Dallas-Mountain View 71
(10) Salem CC 72, (7) Riverland 67
(6) Union 76, (11) Genesee 66
Thursday’s Games
Northern Essex vs. Dallas Mountain View, 9 a.m.
Riverland vs. Union, 11 a.m.
Dallas-Richland vs. (1) Dutchess, 1 p.m.
Herkimer vs. (4) Sandhills, 3 p.m.
Salem CC vs. (2) Mohawk Valley, 6 p.m.
Union vs. (3) Minnesota State-Fergus Falls, 8 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

HERKIMER, N.Y. — Everybody wanted to be the player to slide Salem CC’s name on the second line of the national championship bracket, but by the time all the players got over to the big board on the other side of the court they realized only one player truly deserved the honor.

Tivon Woolford has quietly been playing his role as a reserve all season for the Mighty Oaks, but he’s also known as the team’s wildcard. And Wednesday afternoon, in the biggest basketball game in school history, the wildcard played as an ace.

Together with A.J. Jones, the two guards provided the second-half spark that carried the Mighty Oaks to an historic 72-67 win over seventh-seeded Riverland (Minn.) CC for the program’s first-ever national tournament win in their first-ever appearance in the JUCO Division III tournament at Herkimer College.

The Mighty Oaks (24-7) now take on second-seeded and third-ranked Mohawk Valley (26-1), the No. 1 defensive team in the country, in the Elite 8 Thursday at 6 p.m.

“That’s a big win,” Mighty Oaks coach Mike Green said. “It takes special performances to win in March and Tivon and A.J. gave us that. They played probably one of their better games of the year and it worked out for us.”

Woolford played 18 minutes off the bench and scored eight points on 3-for-4 shooting from the floor. Jones played 19 minutes, scored seven points, including two game-sealing free throws with seven-tenths of a second to play, and had several deflections that disrupted by Blue Devils’ efficient offense. 

All their points came in the second half. They hit back-to-back 3-pointers with four minutes left to snap a 60-60 tie and give the Mighty Oaks the lead for good.

“I thought I did really good today, that I pulled through for the team,” Woolford said. “The team needed some up energy. We needed some energy, points, defense, everything. I felt like I needed to go out there and improve for the team so we could get the win.”

“The whole season I’ve said he was the wildcard,” freshman guard Xavier Brewington said. “Tivon comes up for us whenever we need him. ““He’s unflappable, unflappable,” Green said. “He has the heart of a lion. He’s so out of it that he plays great in big games. He’s not bothered at all in big games. It’s like another walk in the park for him and he’s shown it time and time again.”

Woolford even saved the day at the big bracket, rushing in from the wings when Josh Ramos got fumbled with the backing on the placard and placed it on the proper line in the second round. The sophomore from Newark, Del., one of the last five remaining players from Green’s first half-season, was the player the team wanted to stick it there all along. 

“We definitely feel like Tivon deserved it in this one because he stepped up,” Akeem Taylor said. “That’s the one thing about our team – any day a different player can step up.”

“I’m happy they let me do it because it shows they’ve got the trust in me and that confidence in me to go do my thing and I want to say thank you,” Woolford said. “It felt real good knowing I went out there and got the opportunity to do my thing and show who I really could be. It felt good putting our name up there and showing what we can be.”

It was another strong second-half that got the Mighty Oaks through. They trailed the former No. 1 ranked team in Division III by 10 at halftime after going nearly seven minutes without a field goal, hitting only 1-for-8 from 3-point range, recording only two assists and often getting caught by the shot clock.

In the second half, though, they were 7-for-11 from behind the arc, got better ball movement and held the Blue Devils (29-4) to 30 points while outscoring them by 15. They’ve outscored their three playoff opponents in the second half 126-106 and during their current six-game winning streak they’ve outscored their opponents by nearly 11 points a game in the second half.

“We’re a second-half team for some reason,” Brewington said. “I said in the locker room at halftime we’ve been here before, we’ve been through worse, we’ve got a lot of game left. We’ve got to play together and that’s what happens when we play together.”

“The second half we knew we had to bring it,” Jones said. “It wasn’t even about what works and what doesn’t work. It was about showing heart and grit. That’s what we brought the second half and we showed we were the better team.”

Taylor and Brewington combined for 21 points in the second half and finished with 18 points apiece to lead Salem’s offense. Brewington hit a pair of 3s at the start of the second half to get the Mighty Oaks back in the game. Jyheim Spencer, the top-ranked rebounder in the tournament, had a double-double with 14 points and 10 boards. 

Spencer’s layup off a crisp entry pass from Jones gave the Mighty Oaks their first lead since 11-9 with 6:42 to play.

“Every game we play is history,” Taylor said. “Every game we win we’re making history.”

They sure don’t want it to end with the first one.

“We’re not done yet,” Green said. “We didn’t come here to win one game. We came here to win the tournament.”

SALEM CC 72, RIVERLAND CC 67
SALEM CC (24-7): Tamir Powell 0-6 2-2 2, Tyrese Fortune 0-5 2-2 2, Xavier Brewington 6-13 3-4 18, Akeem Taylor 8-18 1-3 18, Jyheim Spencer 6-8 2-3 14, Dontarius Jones 0-0 0-0 0, A.J. Jones 1-3 4-4 7, Tivon Woolford 3-4 0-0 8, Joshua Ramos 1-3 0-0 3, Rodney Shelton 0-0 0-0 0, Tajee Jordan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-60 14-18 72.
RIVERLAND CC (29-4): Christian Campbell 7-15 3-4 19, Damar Jenkins 4-12 1-2 13, Buai Duop 5-9 0-0 12, Joe Poyser 4-7 2-4 10, Nazih Chehade 3-7 1-3 7, Gabe Hein 0-0 0-0 0, Lubab Kambalo 1-3 0-0 3, Rolph Blanc 0-2 0-0 0, Nick Edland 0-0 0-0 0, Jose Yepez 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 25-57 7-13 67.

3-point goals: Salem 8-19 (Powell 0-2, Fortune 0-2, Brewington 3-6, Taylor 1-2, A. Jones 1-2, Woolford 2-2, Ramos 1-3); Riverland 10-25 (Campbell 2-7, Jenkins 4-10, Duop 2-4, Kimball 1-2, Blanc 0-1, Yepez 1-1). Rebounds: Salem 41 (Spencer 10, Taylor 6, Powell 5, Brewington 5); Riverland 31 (Chehade 9). Total fouls: Salem 13, Riverland 13. Officials: Jim Salamone, Keegan Ryan, Danny Greenwald.