MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Wake Tech ends season for CVCC men

Catawba Valley Community College’s Dezure Moulden (5), a freshman who played prep basketball at Stuart Cramer, shoots over Wake Tech’s Tireek Wilder in Thursday’s game in Raleigh./CODY DALTON, CATAWBA VALLEY ATHLETICS

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RALEIGH – A 22-win season ended on Thursday for the Catawba Valley Community College (CVCC) men’s basketball team.

Fourth-seeded Wake Tech defeated the fifth-seeded Red Hawks 87-65 in a Region X/District IV quarterfinal, leaving CVCC at 22-9 and with the second-most wins in program history.

After the game, CVCC’s Bryan Garmroth, who completed his eighth season as head coach, addressed his players and gave them one simple message.

“I told them it’s been one of the most enjoyable years I’ve ever had coaching,” he said. “They’ve been really fun to work with. They come to work pretty much every day to practice hard, play hard and compete in games.

“22-9 is a good season. We certainly felt like it could have been better. We feel like we had about three games we let get away because we couldn’t make free throws.

“Tonight, it’s sad to end it on a disappointment like this where we come out, and it wasn’t like that we didn’t play hard.

“We were fumbling and couldn’t do anything right. We got beat by a much better team tonight.”

CVCC was plagued by 19 first-half turnovers, falling behind 16-3 in the first eight minutes of the half before trailing 47-33 at halftime.

“That game there was ugly and a nightmare,” Garmroth said. “Everything we did was wrong, but we kept playing hard and we kept competing. That’s the character of the guys on this team. That’s what has made this fun.”

CVCC attempted to rally in the second half, but never got the deficit into single digits.

The game was the final one for five Red Hawks sophomores — Everett Palmer, Victor Tshiona, Brandon Reeves, Isayah Johnson and Jordan Powell.

Garmroth expects to return most, if not all, of his young nucleus of 10 freshmen next winter, including Jonathan McFall, who scored a career-high 21 points to lead CVCC in Thursday’s season finale.

“I think we’ll have a great group of leaders,” Garmroth said. “We’ve just got to get some other guys to come in here and help us.”

As for what he’ll remember the most from this season, it’s all about the players for Garmroth.

“The record is good, but the people that we’ve been with all year are what is important,” he said. “They were a great, great group to coach and one of my most enjoyable seasons ever because of the people on the team.

“The individuals are what will stick out. That’s what you remember are the kids and the guys who come to practice every day, do what they are supposed to do and play and compete.”

The Region 10 tournament winner receives the District IV automatic bid to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II tournament.

Regular-season champion Pitt has clinched the District IV title. If Pitt wins the tournament, the tournament runner-up will be District IV champion.

The national tournament will be played in Danville, Ill,. on March 19-23 at the Mary Miller Center.

REGION X/DISTRICT IV MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

Monday’s first round results

No. 5 CVCC 95, No. 12 Vance-Granville 75

No. 6 Bryant & Stratton 82, No. 11 Lenoir 62

No. 7 Davidson County 95, No. 10 Fayetteville Tech 86

No. 8 Louisburg 71, No. 9 Patrick Henry 67

Thursday’s quarterfinal results

(at Wake Tech)

No. 2 Guilford Tech 93, No. 7 Davidson County 83

No. 1 Pitt 80, No. 8 Louisburg 74

No. 6 Bryant & Stratton 87, No. 3 Florida Gateway 59

No. 4 Wake Tech 87, No. 5 CVCC 65

Friday’s semifinals

(at Wake Tech)

No. 2 Guilford Tech (23-5) vs. No. 6 Bryant & Stratton (14-16), 5 p.m.

No. 1 Pitt (23-7) vs. No 4 Wake Tech (18-11), 7 p.m.

Saturday’s championship

(at Wake Tech)

Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.

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