Gators roll into District final

The theme for Virginia Peninsula Community College men's basketball game Friday night was "one more."

Make one more pass.

Grab one more rebound.

Make one more defensive stop.

Make one more play.

Earn one more win.

Because the Gators did that to perfection in Friday's night's 96-56 rout of the Community College of Allegheny County in the NJCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic District semifinals, VPCC (22-6) has at least one more game. The Gators will play Joliet Junior College on Sunday, March 1, at 12:30 p.m. with a berth to the national tournament on the line. (Watch today's game live by clicking here.) The Gators, ranked 11th in the nation, have been in the NJCAA three seasons and this is the farthest they have advanced in the postseason.

"The guys bought in. I keep telling them one more," said coach Chris Moore. "I will say, these guys, they're fighting to the finish. They understand that it's win or go home and they're not (ready) to go home yet."

Following a longer than expected bus trip Friday (an expected six-hour ride took more than seven), the Gators didn't have much time to prepare for the game. A slow start would have been expected. That didn't happen, although Moore had concerns.

"But ultimately, we train for moments like this," he said. "Our entire season was built for moments like this."

He referenced a November trip to Massachusetts, where they had a long bus ride on the day of their first game. They won that game and went 2-1 on the trip. What the Gators learned then is paying off now.

"It's no different (than that trip)," Moore said of this weekend's schedule. "I just had to find ways to keep us motivated."

A 3-pointer from Chris Cyrus (Hampton Christian Academy) from the right corner 30 seconds into the game Friday got the Gators started. It was never close. The Gators led 12-2 four minutes in, stretched it to 28-4 at about the 10-minute mark and led 47-20 at the half. A 9-5 run to start the second half made sure the final 20 minutes were all academic as the Gators ran their winning streak to 12. They have won 14 of 15 games. VPCC's biggest lead was 95-49 in the closing minute, and the Wildcats never got within 30 in the second half.

Moore never saw a 40-point win coming.

"I can't tell you I did," he said. "I watched them on film. I thought they made shots. I just thought we needed to turn the pressure up early to just try to crowd them and to not allow them to have a good 3-point shooting day."

Leading the way for the Gators was Isaiah Thomas (Manchester High School), who made 5 of 6 3-pointers and finished with 17 points. Cyrus added 11 points, and Jordan Watlington (Menchville) was the only other player in double figures with 10. Four more players had at least eight points.

"They just stayed connected," Moore said. "I was just a little nervous because we were coming off the bus with limited stretching, limited warm-up, but they were able to turn it around quickly."

Almost lost in the excitement was the fact Moore earned his 100^th victory as coach of the Gators. His overall record in seven seasons (he lost one year because of covid) is 100-64.

"I told the guys, 'I got (100), but now I need 101,'" he said.

That "one more" would land the Gators in the NJCAA Division III national tournament at Herkimer Community College in New York on March 11-14.

Joliet (14-11) defeated the host school, Pennsylvania Highlands Community College, 88-67, in Friday's first semifinal. The Gators topped Penn Highlands 78-77 on Feb. 19.

For more information on VPCC, visit www.vpcc.edu.