For the first time in 12 years the Genesee Community College men's basketball team is headed to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Tournament. The Cougars, representing Region III, won the District II title over visiting No. 16 Dean College (MA) out of Region 21 on Saturday afternoon at GCC, 96-79.
Genesee led start to finish and shot better than 53-percent from the floor in the game.
Ervin Mitchell and Naquil Jones both finished in double-figures with 21 points apiece, and Jason Perry Murray became the career leader in blocks in school history with 110. The sophomore needed just one block entering Saturday's contest to take possession of the mark and ended the afternoon with four.
Joshua Doughty dished out six assists in the first half alone and was just one rebound shy of recording a triple-double in the game. He finished with 13 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds.
After trailing by 13 at the half, Dean cut the GCC lead down to nine early in the second but did not get any closer. The Cougars went on a 12-0 run to take control and led by as much as 24 in the final period.
Gabriel Burroughs added 19 points and Perry Murray finished with 12 points and nine boards.
The Cougars finished plus-five in rebounding and forced 17 turnovers by the Bulldogs.
Genesee (23-8) will now wait for the seeds and pairings to be announced for the NJCAA National Tournament, which will be held in Danville, IL on Mar. 17-21. It will be the first trip to the national tournament since the 2002-03 season.
