Posted: Mar 12, 2025
HERKIMER, N.Y. — Sophomore reserves Tivon Woolford and A.J. Jones provided the spark for another big second half that propelled the Salem Community College basketball team to an historic 72-67 win over Riverland (Minn.) CC in the opening round of the NJCAA Division III national tournament Wednesday at Herkimer College.
It was the program's first-ever national tournament win in their first-ever national tournament appearance.
The tenth-seeded Mighty Oaks (24-7) now take on second-seeded and third-ranked Mohawk Valley (26-1) in the Elite 8 Thursday at 6 p.m.
"Our guys answered the bell," Mighty Oaks coach Mike Green said. "That's a big win. It takes special performances to win in March and Tivon and A.J. gave us that."
Woolford played 18 minutes off the bench and scored eight points. Jones played 19 minutes, scored seven points, including two game-sealing free throws with seven-tenths of a second to play, and several deflections on defense that disrupted the Blue Devils' offense. All of their points came in the second half.
The two guards hit back-to-back 3-pointers with four minutes left to snap a 60-60 tie and give the Mighty Oaks the lead for good in a game that went.
The Mighty Oaks trailed the former No. 1 ranked team in Division III by 10 points at halftime, going only 1-for-8 from 3-point range, recording only two assists and often getting caught by the shot clock.
In the second half, however, they went 7-for-11 from behind the arc, held the Blue Devils (29-4) to 30 points and outscored them by 15.
It was the program's first-ever national tournament win in their first-ever national tournament appearance.
The tenth-seeded Mighty Oaks (24-7) now take on second-seeded and third-ranked Mohawk Valley (26-1) in the Elite 8 Thursday at 6 p.m.
"Our guys answered the bell," Mighty Oaks coach Mike Green said. "That's a big win. It takes special performances to win in March and Tivon and A.J. gave us that."
Woolford played 18 minutes off the bench and scored eight points. Jones played 19 minutes, scored seven points, including two game-sealing free throws with seven-tenths of a second to play, and several deflections on defense that disrupted the Blue Devils' offense. All of their points came in the second half.
The two guards hit back-to-back 3-pointers with four minutes left to snap a 60-60 tie and give the Mighty Oaks the lead for good in a game that went.
The Mighty Oaks trailed the former No. 1 ranked team in Division III by 10 points at halftime, going only 1-for-8 from 3-point range, recording only two assists and often getting caught by the shot clock.
In the second half, however, they went 7-for-11 from behind the arc, held the Blue Devils (29-4) to 30 points and outscored them by 15.
"We settled in," Green said. "They've been here before, we haven't been here before."
Akeem Taylor and Xavier Brewington combined for 21 points in the second half and finished with 18 points apiece to lead the offense. Brewington hit a pair of 3-pointers early in the second half to get the Mighty Oaks back in the game. Jyheim Spencer, the top rebounder in the tournament, had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
"We're not done yet," Green said. "We didn't come here to win one game. We came here to win the tournament."
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
Riverview Sports News
