Chipola Junior College Indians Head Coach: Ryan Cross

Gulf Coast Community College Commodores Head Coach: Joe Pons

After dashing Chipola’s state tournament aspirations a week earlier, GCCC almost did the same to Pensacola, but the Pirates were able to escape with a 96-92 win on Feb. 19. Coach Joe Pons’ team finished a disappointing 2-10 conference season on Feb. 21, losing to conference champ Okaloosa-Walton, 102-73. . .Zelimir Stevanovic, who lead the nation in scoring virtually all season long, was named to the 2000 all-PC first-team as well as the FCCAA all-state squad. Edwin Biggs and Reggie Lewis made the PC all-freshman team.

Okaloosa-Walton Community College Raiders Head Coach: Bruce Stewart

Stunned. That’s what the Raiders were following a 66-62 defeat to Brevard CC in the championship game of the FCCAA State Tournament. After two relatively easy wins over Palm Beach CC and Pasco-Hernando CC, OWCC was an overwhelming favorite to advance to Hutchinson, Ks. However, the pesky Titans, led by FCCAA Player-of-the-Year Joe Gordon pulled off one of the biggest upsets in recent memory, ending OWCC’s season at 26-5. . .The Raiders did claim their second consecutive PC crown by beating Chipola (70-63) and Gulf Coast (102-73) in their final two regular season games, earning a No.1 ranking in the final state poll. . .Bruce Stewart was named PC Coach-of-the-Year while Elvin Mims, Kedrick Brown, and Robert Hutchinson, were named to the all-PC team. Mims, who also garnered all-state honors, was runner-up to TCC’s Antwan Jones in PC Player-of-the-Year balloting. Tyrone Hayes was named to the all-freshman team.

Pensacola Junior College Pirates Head Coach: Paul Swanson

Coach Paul Swanson’s players did their part. They beat Gulf Coast (96-92) on Feb. 19 to finish 7-5 in conference play. However, their post-season hopes ended when Tallahassee defeated Chipola two nights later. PJC may have been playing as good as anyone in the conference at season’s end but an 0-2 start in PC play may have been the deciding factor. . .Two players, Ontario Lett and Tywan Harris were named all-Panhandle Conference when the team was released. Malerick Bedden and Raymond Abellard were named to the PC all-freshman team, giving Swanson a solid nucleus to build around next season.

Tallahassee Community College Eagles Head Coach: Mike Gillespie

Tallahassee endured yet another heartbreaking post-season defeat when Central Florida CC, a team the Eagles had beaten twice earlier in the season, shot down TCC, 91-89, in the opening round of the FCCAA state tournament. TCC shot 50% for the game but it wasn’t enough as the red-hot Patriots were even better, shooting 62% for the game (70% in the first half). The loss ended TCC’s run at 25-5. Antwan Jones, who scored 20 points in his final game before moving on to Cincinnati next season, was selected to the all-tournament team. . .TCC earned its first post-season trip in three years by beating Chipola, 101-72, in its regular-season finale. The win gave TCC a perfect home record (16-0) on the season and they will take a 17-game home winning streak into next year. . .Antwan Jones was named PC Player-of-the-Year while budding superstar Marcus Hatten was named the conference’s top freshman. Those two were also selected to the FCCAA’s all-state team. After putting up solid numbers in 2000, Nick Boyd and Ronnie Griffin also received all-conference recognition. Nick Stamps was an honorable mention choice while Bronski Dockery was named to the all-freshman team. . .The March 6 edition of Sports Illustrated with baseball superstars Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Ken Griffey, Jr. on the cover also featured a story on JUCO basketball stars Antwan Jones, College of Southern Idaho’s Kenny Brunner, and Indian Hills stars Cory Hightower and Ernest Brown. Jones’ will also appear in the upcoming edition of SLAM magazine.

Compiled by Rob Chaney who is the Assistant Sports Information Director at Tallahassee Community College.

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