MONROE'S RECENT TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Mustangs last appeared in the 2017 NJCAA Div. I Men's Basketball Championship tournament, picking up a 70-64 victory over No. 11 Indian Hills after entering as the No. 22 seed. The Mustangs dropped their second-round matchup to No. 6 Eastern Florida State. The Mustangs appeared in the 2015 NJCAA Championship tournament, but lost in the First Round to No. 11 Trinity Valley Community College.
 
The Mustangs had a great showing at the 2012 NJCAA Championship. They won their opening-round matchup against Indian Hills, but lost in the Second Round to eventual champion South Plains College. The Mustangs continued through the consolation bracket, defeating Spartanburg Methodist College to advance to the fifth-place game, in which they beat Columbia State Community College to claim fifth place.
 
Monroe was once again strong in the 2011 tournament. After winning their first two matchups, they were defeated in the semifinals by College of Southern Idaho. The Mustangs claimed third place after then defeating Southeastern. 2010 saw the Mustangs lose in the first round, but win their next three games to take fifth place. The Mustangs previously took eighth place in the 2006 NJCAA Championship. They were the fifth-place team in the 2003 tournament.
 
HOW WE GOT HERE
The Mustangs came into the 2022-23 season with a lot of excitement and high expectations, and the Mustangs made good on those expectations, carrying a 28-4 record into the NJCAA Championship tournament, the Mustangs best win percentage (.875) since finishing 33-4 (.892) in 2011-12. The Mustangs completed that season with a fifth-place finish at the 2012 NJCAA Div. I Men's Basketball Championship, winning their final two games after a second-round defeat by eventual champion South Plains College.
 
Monroe's season got off to an immediately historic start, as their season-opening victory over Dutchess Community College was the 500th win in the head coaching career of Jeff Brustad. The Mustangs went on to win their first nine games of the season, including an 82-63 win over then-No. 13 Eastern Florida State College. Monroe's first two losses came on consecutive days down in Florida against Northwest Florida State College (No. 7 seed in the tournament) and then No. 4-ranked Chipola College (No. 9 seed). Monroe followed the Florida trip up with another trip down to North Carolina, winning three games at the Brunswick CC Holiday Classic, including a 96-80 win over eventual Region 10 Champion Cape Fear Community College (No. 24 seed).
 
The Mustangs turned those three wins into a 12-game winning streak, culminating with a 91-61 road victory over rival Harcum College. Monroe was then upset the following weekend at Cecil College. The Mustangs won their next two games before a tough defeat in a rematch at home against Harcum. Monroe wrapped up the regular season with wins over Hostos Community College and Covenant College Prep, scoring 108 and 107 points in those games, respectively.
 
The Mustangs then hosted the 2023 East District Championship at the Monroe Athletic Complex. Allegany College of Maryland defeated Harcum in the semifinals, while the Mustangs took down Hagerstown Community College to reach the championship game. The Mustangs were stunned in the first half of the final, as the Trojans took a 41-32 halftime lead over Monroe. The Mustangs regrouped at the break, immediately closing the gap before outscoring the Trojans by 20 in the second half to win, 89-78, and claim the East District Title and the district's automatic bid to the NJCAA Championship.
 
On top of Coach Brustad's milestone victory to open the season, 2022 All-American Melvin Council Jr. also provided some history for the Mustangs during the season. Council became the third Mustang to ever surpass the 1,000-point plateau in a win over Monroe Community College on Jan. 7. As if that was not enough, Council then became the Monroe College all-time leading scorer on Feb. 18 against Harcum when he exceeded Issiah Francis' record of 1,274 points. Council currently stands atop the leaderboard with 1,358 career points heading into the national tournament.
 
MUSTANGS BY THE NUMBERS
The Mustangs are solid on both ends of the court. The Mustangs rank 11th in the NJCAA in field goals made per game (33.1) and 13th in field goal percentage (49.8 percent), translating to 87.2 points per game (16th). Monroe ranks 11th in defensive rebounds per game (30.2) and 24th in total rebounds per game (42.0). The Mustangs are also 12th in assists per game (19.8). The Mustangs also force a lot of missed shots, ranking fourth in opponents' field-goal percentage (37.3 percent).
 
Council leads the Mustangs with 18.6 points, 4.1 assists and 2.5 steals per game this season. Emmanuel Ogbole is the team leader with 8.2 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game, adding 12.3 points per game as well to rank second on the team. Tyje Kelton is averaging 11.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
 
Ogbole leads the team with a .693 field-goal percentage, but Kelton ranks first with a .432 three-point percentage. Keith Warren Jr. has made the most three-pointers on the team with 59 throughout the season.
 
SCOUTING THE SOUTH GEORGIA STATE HAWKS
South Georgia State College enters the NJCAA Championship with a 26-7 overall record, earning its way into the tournament as the Southeast District Champions. The No. 2-seeded Hawks defeated top-seeded Georgia Highlands College in the Southeast District Championship, 76-72, to capture its second Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Championship in the past three years.
 
The Hawks went 20-7 against NJCAA opponents during the season, carrying a 16-4 record into February before going 5-3 that month, including in-region defeats against Gordon State, Albany Tech and Georgia Highlands. The Hawks were able to avenge two of those losses in the GCAA Championship Tournament with a semifinal win over Albany Tech and a championship victory over Georgia Highlands. South Georgia State heads into the NJCAA Championship on a six-game winning streak.
 
The Hawks average 82.4 points per game this season. They draw a lot of fouls, as they rank sixth in the NJCAA in free-throws made per game with 17.8. They also take advantage of their size with 6.2 blocks per game (ninth in NJCAA), while also ranking 13th in steals per game with 11.5.
 
Carlos Hart is the Hawks' top player, averaging 20.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game to lead the team in all three categories. Zae Wiggins is averaging a team-best 4.0 assists per game, while Yannis Woods is blocking 2.0 shots per game.
 
SCOUTING THE JOHN A. LOGAN VOLUNTEERS
John A. Logan College has had a terrific season, earning the Volunteers the No. 1 overall seed in the NJCAA Championship. After opening the season only receiving votes for the NJCAA Div. I Men's Basketball Rankings, the Vols climbed all the way up to No. 2 in the final rankings on Feb. 27. The Vols won the Region 24 Championship with a 73-66 victory over No. 14-ranked Vincennes University (No. 15 seed), and jumped top-ranked College of Southern Idaho for the No. 1 seed after the Golden Eagles were upset in the Region 18 semifinals by Snow College.
 
The Volunteers suffered back-to-back losses in November to then No. 5-ranked Indian Hills Community College (No. 6 seed) and then No. 16-ranked Northeast Mississippi Community College to fall to 2-2 on the young season. The Volunteers have not lost since that Nov. 11 game against Northeast Mississippi, rolling to 27-straight wins heading into the NJCAA Championship. They defeated Vincennes all three times they played throughout the season, while also defeating Moberly Area Community College (No. 4 seed) back in December.
 
The Volunteers average 85.9 points per game this season. They rank first in the NJCAA in three-point percentage (42.9 percent) and fifth in field-goal percentage (52.7 percent). They are Top 10 in a number of other categories, including assists per game (21.3 – sixth), steals per game (11.8 – seventh), and turnovers per game (9.9 – ninth).
 
Four Volunteers average double-figure scoring on the season, led by Curt Lewis's 14.0 points per game. Elijah Jones is the team leader with 6.6 rebounds per game. Quimari Peterson averages a team-best 4.6 assists and 2.5 steals per game, while ranking second on the team with 13.3 points per game. Both Elliot Lowndes and KJ Debrick average 2.0 blocks per game, while Justin Cross (1.4), Jones (1.3) and Lewis (1.1) are all clocking more than a shot per game.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 11 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).