By Andrew Whigham III
With all the excitement of the Final Four consuming us, antic- ipation is high as all eyes are on who will win the big dance? The brackets are ready and NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams are competing for the top spot in the Division One Basketball.
While they are competing, our beloved Dallas, Texas has a new National Champion in the Men’s Division 1 of theUnited States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) —that team happens to be the Paul Quinn College Tigers, a historically Black College, that withstood the stiffest test in Petersburg, VA to bring home their third National Championship in their 150th year history, starting in Austin, moving to Waco and now permanently in Dallas.
The Tigers opened the tournament by defeating Bluefield State 88-74. Then they took on Bryant & Stratton – Albany and were victorious with a 80-59 final score. The Tigers faced Bryant & Stratton (Buffalo) in the Championship game and won by the margin of 80-69.
With that victory the Tigers brought home the National Championship in the Men’s Division 1 of the USCAA back to Simpson Stuart. The Tigers were coached by Head Coach Brandon Espinosa, Keldrick McKendrick and Aaron Espino- sa.
An elated Coach Brandon Espinosa said he had expectations prior to the season.”
“We had a chip on our shoulders from last season when Covid-19 shut the season down,” he said, “We were disappointed because we didn’t get a chance to play and excited about the opportunity.”
Once the season started the Tigers played with excitement, precision and with a purpose. Espinosa was pleased to see the team follow protocols.
“The Tigers wanted to chase excellence both on and off the court and contribute to the community,” he continued. “The second was winning the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC).”
That appeared to carry a lot of the weight due to being selected to finish last in the conference. “My players come from many backgrounds. I wanted them to know that they had the right recipe for success and winning championships if they worked hard. Anything is possible with sacrifice.”
Coach said it really started to click for the team “when we’re 3-0 versus three top 25 (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) NAIA Schools: Texas A. & M. University – Texarkana (TAMU-Tex), LSU – Alexandria and Southwest Assemblies of God University. (SAGU)”
This year’s team followed the group leadership of Spencer McElway, Ja’Mare and Ja’Mere Redus, Steven Tynes, Henry Hampton, Bruce Scott, Trevoin Shaw, just to name a few. Part of the Red River Association and also a part of the USCAA, the teams’ record was 26-2.
Team Members:
0 – Brandon Johnson, 1- Ja’Mare Redus, 2- Ja’Mere Re- dus, 3 – TJ Mingo, 5 – Chris Scai- fe, 10 – Steven Tynes, 11 – Anei Anei-Yor, 12 – Caleb Thompson, 14 – De’Auntre Davis, 15 – Henry Hampton, 22 – Spencer McEl- way, 23 – Bruce Scott, 30 – Tre- voin Shaw, 35 – Latrell Goodwin
The Tigers were ranked # 1 from the gate to finish with Double digit victories, and four players averaging Double/Doubles throughout the season.
Congratulations to the Coach, Coaching Staff and his players on winning the USCAA National Championship. Paul Quinn College is led by President Dr. Michael Sorrell and the Athletic Director is James “Zip” Summers.
Champions are taught, Champions are breeded and the breeding ground happens to be at Paul Quinn College!
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