‘Incident’ knocks TCC men out of postseason

Special to the Outlook

Tallahassee Community College’s men’s basketball team will not participate in the 2021 postseason following a ruling from the NJCAA last Thursday, the result of a postgame altercation at Pensacola State College last Saturday.

The NJCAA, in its ruling, deemed the altercation a “non-collegial incident” and determined the entire men’s basketball roster will be charged with a violent ejection, which carries a two-game suspension.

The next scheduled contest for Tallahassee was the opening round of the FCSAA State/NJCAA District Tournament – and part of the criteria for at-large consideration to the national tournament. However, with the NJCAA’s ruling, the season is done for the Eagles.

“While I am sad and disappointed to see our team’s season end in this manner, as members of the NJCAA, we have a Sportsmanship Code to uphold,” said athletic director Rob Chaney. “Anytime we fall short of that standard, there are consequences and, unfortunately, we will not have the opportunity to compete for a state and national championship. Tallahassee Community College has followed all NJCAA & FCSAA protocols throughout this process, and we will use this experience to become a better version of ourselves moving forward.”

Tallahassee’s season ends with a share of the Panhandle Conference Championship. The Eagles’ season ended with 19-3 record.

Ellis, Kendall lead Eagles’

All-PC selections

Meanwhile, TCC placed four players on the All-Panhandle Conference men’s basketball teams.

The Eagles also picked up three individual honors, led by Player of the Year El Ellis. Jeremiah Kendall was voted Newcomer of the Year and Zach Settembre received Co-Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Eagles to a share of the Panhandle Conference Championship.

Ellis, a sophomore guard from Durham, N.C., is Tallahassee’s first repeat Player of the Year winner and just the third overall since 1997, joining Chipola College’s Chris Porter (1997 and 1998) and Northwest Florida State College’s Chris Jones (2012 and 2013).

Ellis averaged 17.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 22 games while shooting 46.0 percent from the field, 41.7 percent from three and 75.9 percent from the free throw line.

He also garnered First-team All-PC recognition along with Kendall and Shawn Walker.

DeAngelo Ware was named Second-team All-PC.

Kendall, a sophomore forward from The Bronx, was the top vote-getter among transfers. After playing his freshman season at Monroe (N.Y.) College, he averaged 14.1 points and 7.7 rebounds in 22 games while shooting 62.2 percent from the field.

Walker, a sophomore guard from Elizabeth City, N.C., averaged 11.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 22 games while shooting 48.6 percent from the field, 47.0 percent from three and 86.5 percent from the free throw line.

Ware, a sophomore guard from Evansville, Ind., averaged 9.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 22 games while shooting 40.0 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from three and 63.4 percent from the free throw line.

Named after former Tallahassee head coach, the Eddie Barnes Panhandle Conference Coach of the Year Award recognizes the head coach of the conference champions.

Settembre guided the Eagles to a 13-3 league mark in 2021, a school-record for PC wins, and a share of the conference title. Having coached Tallahassee to an outright championship in 2020, this was the Eagles’ first back-to-back championships since 1996 and 1997.

Nikulochkina twins, 

James earn All-PC honors

TCC also placed three members on the All-Panhandle Conference women’s basketball teams.

Sophomore guards Ana Nikulochkina and Polina Nikulochkina were voted First-team All-PC while sophomore guard Rita James was a second-team selection.

The Nikulochkina twins, who are from Moscow, Russia, put up near-similar numbers during the COVID-shortened 2021 season.

Ana averaged 11.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.2 steals in 17 games while shooting 68.2 percent from the free throw line.

Polina, meanwhile, appeared in 16 games and averaged 10.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.8 steals. She shot 87.5 percent from the free throw line.

James, who hails from Bayelsa State, Nigeria, averaged 6.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.4 steals in 16 games. She shot 78.8 percent from the free throw line.