It's February. That means we're just six weeks away from the 2020 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship in Hutchinson, KS.
The host city for every men's DI tournament since 1949, 316 different programs have made the trip to the heart of Kansas for "The Tournament" over the years. Still, many teams are seeking their first trip.
Here's a few teams looking to punch their first ticket.
Triton – (21-5)
A long-time contender at the NJCAA Division II level, Triton is now in its second season in Division I. The Trojans have won at least 30 games in each of the last four seasons, including a 30-4 mark in the program's inaugural 2018-19 DI season. In Triton's final year competing DII, the Trojans won the national championship in Danville, IL with an 89-85 win over Pima to finish the season 33-4. Last year, the Trojans fell one game short to Moberly Area 96-92 in a district championship.
This season, the Trojans beefed up their schedule. Narrow early losses to current No. 1 Florida SouthWestern (88-83) and No. 25 Southeastern (85-83) proved that Triton would be competitive with any opponent. The Trojans also flew out to the Fiesta Bowl Shootout in Mesa, AZ; dropping a double-overtime decision to Seward County (97-96), a close loss to Southern Idaho (87-82), before taking down Midland, 74-68.
The Trojans own wins over No. 21 Moberly Area (103-100) and Highland (83-66), both teams they could face again in district tournament play.
Clarendon (TX) – (21-2)
Clarendon is coming off back-to-back 19-win seasons after a spell of four years with losing records. The Bulldogs currently sit atop the WJCAC standings, a conference that features 2018 national champion South Plains and has placed at least two teams in the national tournament field in each of the last three seasons.
Now having crossed the 20-win mark, the Bulldogs are in the midst of the toughest part of their regular season slate. Monday's win at Howard along with a Thursday trip to South Plains will give the country a better on where the Bulldogs sit heading into the final leg of the season.
Dyersburg State – (19-3) or Jackson State – (15-3)
Dyersburg State and Jackson State both currently lead the TCCAA standings well past the midway point of conference play. Neither team has made it to Hutchinson before, but other TCCAA teams have recently made considerable noise in recent years. Last year, Cleveland State became the first 24-seed to win a national tournament game when the Cougars knocked off ninth-seeded Casper. In 2018, Motlow State took down Otero to advance to the second round.
All three of Dyersburg State's losses have come by three points, meaning the Eagles are just nine total points away from being undefeated. One of the country's top scorers resides on the Dyersburg State roster – Bryce McBride is currently averaging 23.5 points per game, ninth-best in NJCAA DI – and will be a key factor to whether the Eagles can make it to Hutchinson.
Jackson State features the fifth leading scorer in NJCAA DI. Kavion Hancock is averaging 26.1 points per game for the Green Jays. After starting the season 11-0, Jackson State has won just four of its last seven games since January 15th and will be tested in the coming week when the Green Jays host reigning region champion Cleveland State on Saturday.
Cowley – (22-3)
Cowley's the odd one out on this list.
The Tigers have national tournament appearances to their name, four of them in fact. The key difference is that more than 60 years have passed since Cowley (then known as Arkansas City Junior College) last made the trip to The Salt City for the national tournament. Currently just one of two KJCCC teams in the latest set of NJCAA DI men's basketball rankings, the sixth-ranked Tigers have already taken victories against both of the league's national tournament teams from a year ago: a 67-63 win against Seward County on December 11th and a regular season sweep of Coffeyville.
The only losses for the Tigers this season have come to current No. 9 Northern Oklahoma Tonkawa twice and a high-scoring affair to current No. 22 Colby.
Colby – (20-4)
Just the same as Cowley, Colby represents a different look to the top of the KJCCC standings this year. Currently tied with Barton atop the West Division standings, Colby also could be in line for its first trip this year.
A huge benefit to the Colby lineup is the distribution of scoring. Eddie Davis leads the offensive charge with 18.1 points per game, but five additional players are averaging well into double figures.
A six-day, three-game stretch starting February 10th with a road trip to Barton, a home game with Seward County, and a road trip to Hutchinson could give a great perspective on where the Trojans stack up ahead of postseason play.
Wallace-Selma – (22-2)
Just a year after posting a 2-28 record, Wallace-Selma now sits at 22-2 and is on the cusp of the of being included in the top-25 of the NJCAA DI rankings. The Patriots have only recorded two winning seasons since 2000 and have regularly been at the bottom of the ACCC standings.
This season is different. The Patriots are winners of 13 straight games including a 65-61 road victory over Shelton State, the ACCC's national tournament qualifier a year ago.
Wallace-Selma's biggest difference-makers this season have been via a trio of guards. Antonio Jones, Rodney Battle, and Travarus Carroll are all averaging above 15 points per game this season, accounting for more than 60 percent of the Patriots scoring this season.
The 2020 NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Championship takes place March 16-21 at the Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, KS