Men's Basketball hasn't played much as of late, three games in the last 30 days to be exact, but what they have been working for all season is finally here. The #4 seeded Red Ravens are set to take on the #20 seeded Kaskaskia, who knocked off Sheridan College in their first game of the tournament. Kaskaskia out of Centralia, Illinois is 24-10 on the 2018-19 season. Kaskaskia earned a bid to the National Tournament beating Wabash Valley 68-66 in the Region XXIV Championship Game.
The Ravens are hungry to get back in their winning groove. Coffeyville is 29-3 this season, finished 19-1 in conference, won the Jayhawk Conference Regular Season Championship, was ranked in the top 10 the entire season, spent 10 of 12 weeks ranked in the top 5, was undefeated at home, has beat five top 25 teams this season and Coach Jay Herkelman set the all-time Region VI wins record formerly held by Francis Flax.
The Ravens will be lead on the floor by a slew of superstars. Tevin Brewer was named KJCCC-East Player of the Conference, Quawn Marshal was name KJCCC Defensive Player of the Year, and Miekkel Murray was named KJCCC Freshman of the Year. Tevin Brewer and Marvin Johnson were both First Team All-Conference, Casey Benton and Keon Queen were Second Team All-Conference, and Manny Crump, Miekkel Murray, and Quawn Marshall were all selected Honorable Mention All-Conference.
The Ravens will be lead by Hall of Fame Coach and 2018-19 KJCCC Coach of the Year Jay Herkelman. Herkelman looks to win his first National Championship this season. His previous best finish was in 2001-02 he lead his squad to a 36-2 record and a second place finish in the NJCAA National Tournament, losing by one point in the championship game. Coffeyville looks to win its first Basketball National Championship since 1962 where they finished 32-0 and were coached by Jack Hartman. The journey begins tomorrow March 20th at 12 pm in Hutchinson, Kansas.
To follow the bracket for the NJCAA National Tournament you can click the link below