NORTH PLATTE – On Friday night, some of the players from the women’s basketball program were involved in an incident that goes against team code of conduct policies.

The incident in question did not involve any arrests for the Knights players but will result in suspensions being handed down just days before the team leaves for Harrison Arkansas where they will compete in the national tournament as the #16 seed.

The suspensions could affect the team for the tournament and also could extend into next season according to the team.

“It’s not anything that I consider major, but it was a violation of our team code of conduct, which is something we take very seriously,” Thurman said. “As a team, we are working through this together and are looking forward to playing in the national tournament.”

The team has not released any information on the suspensions or who was involved.

North Platte, NE – With an invitation to Sheridan, WY to continue the Region IX tournament on the line the Knights did enough little things right to move on. It doesn’t hurt that they got a little help from McCook on the way.

The Knights knew that this would be a tough game having gone 1-1 against McCook during the season (both teams winning their respective home games) and knowing McCook would be upset after being blown out in North Platte last time they played 91-68. Complicating matters was the Knights starting center Jakub Karwowski would be unavailable after injuring his left leg in the game against Western Nebraska.

The first half started as you would expect it to with both teams coming out and throwing their best game right out of the gate. Neither team would start off with the momentum as they each would keep it close. McCook would call the first time out with 16:44 left on the clock and North Platte in the lead 6-4.

McCook would start to gain a little bit of momentum but North Platte’s talent kept them in the game. Coach O’Connor would take his first time out with 13:40 left in the first half. The Knights had the lead 11-10 and had already gone through 5 lead changes.

McCook would go on a 6-3 run and capitalize on the Knights missing their big man, consistently getting into the paint area. That would draw another time out from North Platte with 12:14 remaining and McCook on top 16-14.

The next three minutes of the game would still belong to McCook, with 9:22 left in the first half the Knights would take yet another time out as they felt the game starting to slip away. McCook had the lead 20-16. It’s at this point coach O’Connor went with a smaller lineup to try to stay in front of the speedy Indian crew.

The smaller lineup would grab back the momentum and go on a 10-5 run of their own prompting a time out from McCook with just under six minutes in the first half. North Platte in the lead 26-25.

For the rest of the first half, the Knights would clamp down defensively and start to impose their will on the game. It was the team we had seen all year long turning defense into easy layups on the other end and getting to the free throw line at will. McCook would miss a layup with about 8 seconds to go. Edgars Kaufmanis would head upcourt and bury a layup of his own at the buzzer. The end of the first half would see the Knights in control 44-37.

All the time outs taken in the first half would be a BIG BIG factor in the game later on (spoiler alert!!).

The second half would mirror the first with the Knights quickly going back to a smaller lineup to counter the speed of the Indians. McCook would take the momentum back from North Platte to start the second half. North Platte would let their guys stay out on the court and fight through the momentum shift until with 8:36 left the Knights would take a time out. McCook would be in the lead at that point 63-62.

Moments later the wheels looked like they would start coming off for McCook, Peanut Cunningham would draw a technical foul after a McCook made basket that would give the Knights a chance for a large point swing. The Knights would capitalize and use that to get things going on their side of the ball.

Neither team would ever lead this game by more than 7 points (North Platte) and with 4:00 on the clock McCook would take a time out down by 3, 72-69. North Platte’s defense was starting to get back into the game and things looked to be going the Knights way at that point.

Fast forward to the last minute of gameplay with the game tied at 82 points. McCook with possession and time ticking down. They would get it across halfcourt and immediately be trapped by the swarming defense of North Platte. McCook would take a time out with 11.8 seconds left on the clock. After conferring with the scorer’s table it was determined that McCook was out of timeouts at this point and would be assessed a technical foul.

Tim Johnson would sink both free throws giving North Platte the lead 84-82. McCook would keep possession of the ball. They would get the look they wanted but miss the layup. Courtney Murrell would snag the rebound and be fouled. He would make 1 of 2 and the Knights would hold on to take the victory 85-82.

The season comes to an end for the McCook Indians with the loss. The Knights earn the right to head to Sheridan WY for the remainder of the Region IX tournament.

The Knights will play Central Wyoming on Thursday, March 7th at 6 pm central time.

Scottsbluff, NE – Sports pundits are known to say that a season is a marathon and not a sprint, well last night pundits would be wrong.

The North Platte Knights travelled up to Scottsbluff for a showdown for the #1 spot in the Region IX south sub-district. The winner would take the top spot and earn an automatic bid to the Region IX tournament in Sheridan WY. The loser would then get the right to host McCook on Saturday the 1st to earn a spot in Sheridan.

The Palace at WNCC was packed headed into tip-off as the Cougars were also celebrating sophomore night, would be the last home game for 6 players from the team.

WNCC would jump out to an early lead in this one going up 6-0 before the Knights were able to get a bucket. Teams would go back and forth for a little as WNCC would slowly start to build a lead. Shots for the Knights were just not falling throughout the first half.

After about 5 minutes of play time the floodgates would open for WNCC. They would get out in transition and start hitting shots from all over the floor. The Knights didnt have an answer for the Cougar attack.

Between transition baskets and NBA length three pointers the Cougars found themselves up by double digits early in the half and would stay there throughout.

Only Tim Johnson would have any offense for the Knights going 10/10 from the FT line in the first half to lead the scoring for the Knights. He would be a big part of the momentum shift as the Knights, down by 20 with a minute left in the half would rattle off 4 quick points and get a couple big defensive stops.

The first half would end 50-34 in favor of WNCC. It should be noted that the Cougars shot an out worldly percentage from the field in the first half. They would go 19/31 (61.3%) from the field and go 9/20 (45%) from 3pt range. Those numbers are outstanding and not something one usually sees in a basketball game, at any level.

The Knights, however, would build on that momentum from the end of the half and would storm out of the gates going on a quick 9-3 run to open up the second half. That would prompt a quick time out from WNCC with the score sitting at 53-43, what was a blowout now would turn into a close game.

A combination of the Cougars coming back down to earth mixed with tough defense from the Knights would continue for much of the second half. At numerous times the Knights would get the lead down to 9 points before WNCC would go on a mini run of their own and push it back into double digits.

WNCC started to sweat as their shot was not falling while the Knights were gaining momentum. Another time out with 9:43 left on the clock by the Cougars that tried to stave off Knights momentum. At that point the score stood at 69-58.

Finally with about 7 minutes remaining the Knights would start their push. A group of Da’May Jones, Jakub Karwowski, Courtney Miller, Tim Johnson and Edgars Kaufmanis would be the magic lineup and push the lead below that 9 point barrier and further. Kaufmanis would get in a foul trouble and would be swapped out for Ilya Tyrtyshnik.

With 4:09 left in the game, Tyrtyshnik would hit a three point shot from the top of the key that would tie the game at 71-71. The Knights had done the improbable and clawed back from 20 points down to tie things up.

Another quick time out by WNCC would prove to be what they needed. The season previous the Cougars were eliminated in the 2nd round of the National Championship tournament and used that experience to close out a game at home. They would finish the game on an 11-5 run and take the victory 82-76.

Leading the way for the Knights was Tim Johnson with 23 points. Courtney Murrell would put in 16 and Karwowski would be in double digits with 10 points.

Karwowski would also snag 12 rebounds for the Knights.

WNCC carries the #1 seed and will get a first round bye. The Knights will host McCook in the first round on Saturday March 2nd. The time is still to be determined.

Postseason basketball is here and for fans of North Platte Community College, there is still a lot of things that are up in the air.

For the Women, the regular season is over and they know what their fate will be. They ended the regular season in second place:

That means the Women will host the first round of the Region IX playoffs against Southeast Community College. That game will be played on Wednesday, Feb 27th. The Knights have gone 1-1 against the Southeast Storm this season. The first matchup the Knights lost 81-74 at home on Jan 28th. The Knights then beat Southeast in Beatrice on Feb 9th 77-62.

The winner of that game will then go on to the finals of the Region IX tournament to play Central Community College. That game will be played in Columbus on March 4th.

Should the Knights beat both Southeast and Central, they would then host the District F championship (which spends one year in Region IX and one year in Region XIII, this year Region IX will host) for the opportunity to then move on to the national championship.

The Women’s national championship will be March 19-23rd in Arkansas.

For the Men, one game remains in the regular season and it is a very important one. On February 26th the Knights will travel to Scottsbluff to play the Cougars for first place in the South sub-district of Region IX. Here are the standings headed into that game:

The Knights are 1-0 against Scottsbluff this season, beating them in North Platte on Jan 25th, 81-74. After the game on the 26th, the Region IX playoffs will start. Where the Knights play and how many rounds is dependent on what happens the night of the 26th.

Knights beat Scottsbluff: The Knights will be the #1 seed in the Region IX South sub-district and will earn that all important first round bye. This automatically punches their ticket to Sheridan, WY for the Region IX tournament where they will be re-seeded. That tournament will take place on March 7-9. Headed into the Tournament with the #1 seed in the South Sub-district will help the Knights earn a favorable draw for the first round.

Knights lose to Scottsbluff: The Knights drop to #2 and will have to win another game in order to earn their spot in Sheridan. Should this happen the Knights will host McCook at home on Saturday, March 1st. McCook is one of two teams in the South sub-district to get a win over North Platte this season. The Knights split their games against the Indians, losing the first 84-76 on Jan 29th in McCook. The Knights got revenge at home on Feb 20th with a big win, 91-68.

Should the Knights win the Region IX tournament that earns an automatic entry into the National Championship tournament. If the Knights make it to the final day of the Region IX tournament there is still a chance the Knights can earn an “at large” bid into the national championship. As it stands Region IX has two teams ranked in the top 25 on the season (Sheridan and Casper) and Western Nebraska has spent time ranked this season. All of that goes into consideration when discussing “at large” bids.

The Knights have been to the national tournament twice in their history. The furthest they have gotten is the second round.