Past two defending national champions claim Region 4 titles
ROCKFORD, ILL. - Region 4 has been the class of NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball, with the past two national champions coming out of the region. Those two program will both represent the region on the national level after top-seeded South Suburban College and #2-seeded Milwaukee Area Technical College won the 2024 NJCAA Region 4 Division II Midwest District A & B Tournaments, respectively. The Bulldogs, who won the 2022 national title, took down defending region champion and #5-seed Waubonsee Community College with a 94-82 victory in the finals, while the Stormers, national champions from a year ago, defeated city-rival and #6 Bryant & Stratton College by a 94-78 margin to complete a three-peat. Jemel Jones of SSC and Shelton Williams-Dryden of MATC-Milwaukee were named the Region 4 Tournament Most Valuable Players, with South Suburban's John Pigatti and Milwaukee's Randy Casey receiving Region 4 Coach of the Year honors. (Recaps: South Suburban | Milwaukee Tech)
South Suburban College began postseason play with a 101-59 rout of #16-seed Madison College, and followed with a semifinal round defeat of #8-seed Moraine Valley Community College by a lopsided 97-66 margin. Against the Chiefs, SSC ran out to a 39-29 halftime lead and then held off WCC in a high-scoring second half. Jones, who leads all of NJCAA Division II in scoring, posted 29 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Quentin Heady went for 14 points and eight boards, while Reggie Abram came off the bench to score 14 points as both players joined Jones on the All-Tournament Team.
Milwaukee Tech's run to the title started with a 94-68 win in the quarterfinals over #15-seed Prairie State College and advanced to play #7-seed Morton College in the semifinals, where they eeked out a 68-62 win. Facing their in-state rivals in the tournament finale, the Stormers built a 47-33 halftime lead en route to the 16-point win. Williams-Dryden registered a double-double of 26 points and 12 rebounds, and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Shamann Artis (19 points), Qi'Andre Washington (14 poitns), and Ke'Varius Taylor (9 points).
The 2024 NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championships runs March 18-23 in Danville, Illinois, and South Suburban College (31-2) will opens play on March 19 as the #2 seed. They will play the winner of the first round game between #15-seed Howard College (26-6) and #18 Florida State-Jacksonville (25-8). Milwaukee Area Technical College (28-5) was awarded the #6 seed and begins with a second round contest against #11-seed Iowa Lake Community College (26-7) on March 18. The NJCAA Division II Poll closed with the Bulldogs ranked #3 and the Stormers at #8.
2024 Region 4 Division II All-Tournament Teams
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District A) All-Tournament Team
Jemel Jones - South Suburban College
Quentin Heady - South Suburban College
Reggie Abram - South Suburban College
Fernando Perez - Waubonsee Community College
Duane Doss - Waubonsee Community College
David Robinson - Waubonsee Community College
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District A) Tournament MVP
Jemel Jones - South Suburban College
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District A) Coach of the Year
John Pigatti - South Suburban College
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District B) All-Tournament Team
Shelton Williams-Dryden - Milwaukee Area Technical College
Ke'Varius Taylor - Milwaukee Area Technical College
Qi'Andre Washington - Milwaukee Area Technical College
Shamann Artis - Milwaukee Area Technical College
Parker Grant - Bryant & Stratton College
Karter Thomas - Bryant & Stratton College
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District B) Tournament MVP
Shelton Williams-Dryden - Milwaukee Area Technical College
2024 Region 4 (Midwest District B) Coach of the Year
Randy Casey - Milwaukee Area Technical College
(Images courtesy of South Suburban College Athletics and Milwaukee Area Technical College Athletics)