Hutchinson, KS – The #20-seed Monroe University men's basketball team's season came to an end on Monday as it dropped its second-round matchup at the 2025 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament to #4-seed South Plains College, 91-71.
After a rigorous overtime battle in the first-round against #13-seed Chipola College, the Mustangs ran out of steam against the Texans to put an end to a potential tournament run as one of the five lowest seeds in the field.
Freshman
Qingfang Pang was a much-needed spark off the bench, scoring a team-high 20 points. Sophomore
Ryan Williams Jr. concluded his Monroe career with a 19-point performance, which included 15 first half points.
The Mustangs led at the half, 44-42, but shots just wouldn't fall across the final 20 minutes as the deficit grew larger with each trip down the floor for South Plains. The Texans shot 55.9% in the second half compared to 30.6% for Monroe.
Monroe fell behind early, but embarked on a 10-0 run to make it 18-16 ahead of the second media timeout. From there, the two sides traded baskets, with Monroe holding the slight edge thanks to three free throws by Pang to close out the half.
The second half started promising, but a 10-0 run of their own put the Indians in control, 60-50. The Mustangs tried to trim the deficit, however, the shots began to come up short as South Plains began to look like the fresher team having not played a overtime thriller two days prior.
Over the final ten minutes of the contest, the advantage for South Plains never dipped below 13 points. Pang led the Mustangs with nine second half points, while sophomore
Devere Palmer Jr. recovered from a tough first half to put up seven on the Indians.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as the Monroe University marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeUMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
