Mesa Community College hosts annual holiday basketball tournament
Mesa Community College will host a holiday basketball tournament Dec. 27-29 that will pit eight teams from five different states against one another in the three day tournament.
The Mesa Community College Holiday Tournament Presented by VisitMesa is a bracket style tournament that has four games per day. Games are played at two, four, six, and eight p.m each day.
The tournament, which began in 1983, was originally constructed as a 16 team tournament which would bring the top Division I schools to MCC. Over time, it became such a popular tournament that it would be known as one of the best Junior College Invitational Tournaments in the country.
Though the tournament is held in the thick of the holiday season, teams still claw at the opportunity to take part.
Over the years, over 35 teams from 17 different states, as well as Alberta, Canada, have taken the floor in the tournament.
Many of the teams have participated in the tournament multiple times, and some have dominated the field in their time participating. Both Salt Lake Community College and South Plains College have won more than 17 games in their years of participation.
Among the eight teams competing in the three day event are three of the top 25 teams in the NJCAA DI ranking.
Snow College comes in at No. 19, South Plains is ranked No. 14, while Salt Lake owns the No. 1 spot in the country.
The other two schools who reside outside of Arizona are Seward County Community College and San Bernardino Valley College.
Three Arizona teams can be found in the bracket, as Central Arizona College, Glendale Community College and Mesa Community College fill out the field of eight.
A tournament does bring obstacles to overcome for teams, especially those traveling thousands of miles. With the unpredictable nature of a bracket tournament, teams might have an idea of who they will play but won’t be certain until games conclude throughout the day.
Tournaments like this help teams prepare their bodies and minds for playing in the NJCAA National Tournament.
Coach Andrew May and the Snow College Badgers use tests like these to help their players see what it takes to run a bracket and come out on top.
“It’s preparing our guys for wanting to play at the national tournament,” said May, “that tournament bracket, being able to play back to back nights, three nights in a row is good prep for the national tournament.”
This tournament is an important time for many players who take the floor as the tournament typically sees a lot of NCAA school scouts and recruiters who circle this tournament on their calendar to watch the best of the best at the junior college level battle it out.
The tournament is a great place for participating schools to showcase their talented players in order to help get them to the next level.
“There’s usually a ton of Division I and Division II schools at this tournament to watch our guys and get them the exposure they need to be recruited at the next level,” said May.
Hours go into studying film on your opponent, taking note of their tendencies, strengths,and weaknesses. From those hours of study, a game plan begins to take shape and practices are geared to getting players ready for that specific opponent.
Another challenge to traveling to a tournament so far away from home is playing against unfamiliar competition.
Doing hours of film study can only prepare you so much, as playing teams you see during your conference stretch of the season can bring out the best in teams.
When playing a team so often, you begin to understand them better, from their late game situation playcalling, to their coaches tendencies during particular matchups.
While Glendale, Central Arizona, and MCC all share the ACCAC, and will possibly have matchups against each other depending how the bracket turns out, they are not the only teams who will see familiar faces in late December.
Both hailing from Utah, Snow and Salt Lake both play in the Scenic West Athletic Conference.
The two teams are set to face off three times this season. In their first meeting on Dec. 7, Salt Lake was able to come out with the win 92-67.
Through getting exposure for their teams, cementing the bond their teams share, and preparing for larger scale tournaments are all items to check off for a team, winning the whole tournament has to top the checklist when entering a contest like this.
MCC has been crowned champions of the tournament twice, while Salt Lake has won three times, and South Plains College has won the tournament four times, the most out of any team.
Last year, Salt Lake took home the trophy after defeating Snow College in the championship game, 68-85.
Mesa Community College Thunderbirds
The Thunderbirds come into the tournament with a 5-4 overall record and a 1-4 conference record. The team got off to a hot start to the season, as they won four of their first five games, but since then have dropped three of their last four. MCC is led in scoring by sophomore guard Timmy Johnson who averages 15.1 points per game. They come in averaging 80.8 points a game, while giving up 69.6 points each contest to their opponents. MCC has played two of the teams in the tournament already this season, as they beat Central Arizona but lost to Glendale Community College. MCC will open up the tournament facing Seward County Community College on Dec. 27 at 8 p.m.
Glendale Community College Gauchos
The Gauchos come into the tournament with a 6-3 overall record, while having a 2-3 conference record. They are undefeated at home, but have yet to win a game on the road this season. They are beginning to get their footing, as they have won their last three games. The Gauchos are led in scoring by sophomore Eric Blackwell, who averages 18.6 points a game. Glendale averages 91.1 points a contest while allowing 77.8 points to their opponents per game. GCC opens up the tournament playing San Bernardino Valley College on Dec. 27 at 6 p.m
Central Arizona College
The CAC Vaqueros come into the tournament with a 3-7 overall record and a 2-3 conference mark. The Vaqueros are led in scoring by Prince Davies, who averages 27.7 points a game, though he has not seen action since Nov. 22 when CAC faced Chandler-Gilbert Community College. Chandler Burnett is the team’s second leading scorer at 15.7 points a game on average. The team has lost three of their last five games, including a 67-70 loss to MCC. CAC scores 74.4 points a game, while giving up 85.2 points per contest to their opponents. Central Arizona will open up their tournament schedule on Dec. 27 at 4:00 p.m as they take on Salt Lake Community College.
South Plains College
The No. 14 South Plains College Texans come in with a 10-1 record, but don’t open up conference play until after the tournament. The Texans come in riding a nine game winning streak as they average 79.5 points a game, while allowing just 59.6 points to their competition per game. The team is led in scoring by Christian Coleman, who averages 16.8 points a game. The team has the longest break between their last game and the tournament, as they last played Dec. 3 against Adam State JV. SPC will play the first game of the tournament as they take on Snow College on Dec. 27 at 2:00 p.m.
Seward County Community College
The SCCC Saints come into the tournament with a 7-5 overall record, while posting a 4-5 record in conference play. The Saints have experience playing against elite competition, as they battled No. 9 Dodge City Community College and Garden City Community College already this season.. SCCC averages 81.7 points a game and allows their opponents to score 82.1 per contest. The Saints will take on MCC in their first game of the tournament on Dec. 27 at 8:00 p.m
Snow College
The Snow College Badgers come into the tournament with a 13-2 record while possessing a 5-1 conference record. Their two losses came to No. 1 Salt Lake Community College and Arizona Western. The Badgers have six different players averaging double figures in scoring, and are led in that category by Dylan Jones who averages 14.3 points per game. Snow begins their tournament play on Dec. 27 at 2:00 p.m. against South Plains.
Salt Lake Community College
The Salt Lake Community College Bruins come into the tournament ranked No. 1 in the country with a 11-1 over record and a 3-1 conference record. They lost their first game of the season on Dec. 17 to No. 4 Southern Idaho 81-84. The Bruins are led in scoring by Alejandro Vasquez, who averages 18.2 points a game. Salt Lake averages 98.9 points a game while allowing just 74 points to their opponents. SLCC will open up their tournament play on Dec. 27 as they take on Central Arizona at 4:00 p.m.
San Bernardino Valley College
The San Bernardino Valley College Wolverines come in with a 9-2 record riding an eight game winning streak and have the shortest break of all the teams in the tournament when it comes to their last game, as they played on Dec. 20. The Wolverines are led in scoring by Dominique Daniels who averages 25.8 points per contest. SBVC will open their first tournament game against Glendale on Dec. 27 at 6:00 p.m.
