THE FOLLOWING STORY IS BY BILL PICKETT
The twenty teams playing in this week’s NJCAA Division II Men’s National Basketball Tournament in Danville are in town. Bill Pickett has the story…
And Pima Community College of Tucson, Arizona players added fuel to their bodies at the Sons of American Legion Post 210 Breakfast in Danville Sunday. Pima’s head coach, Brian Peabody, says it’s nice to be back in Danville….
{AUDIO: “Well, we love Danville. It’s one of my favorite spots. They do an unbelievable job hosting the tournament. Also, I want to thank the American Legion for hosting my team and my staff today. And it’s just a well-organized, well-run tournament. We love coming here.”}
The teams from Pima and Danville Area Community College also visited Liberty Estates where they had a chance to greet senior citizens. Peabody was asked what he hopes players remember about the visit…
{AUDIO: “Well, just the appreciation and what everybody does in giving back to the community. Because the community gives so much to us in hosting the tournament, so we just like to give back.”}
The Pima coach was asked how his team is doing – physically – with play getting underway in the tournament…
{AUDIO: “We had a rough year. My starting five man tore his ACL, so he’s done for the year. We have four other guys that have been hurt most of the season. Right now, we’re about 90-percent healthy, which is probably the same for everybody in the tournament.”}
Coach Peabody notes the NJCAA Division II Men’s National Basketball Tournament gives players an opportunity to perform in front of coaches from a lot of colleges and universities….
{AUDIO: “It does a really good job – recruiting wise. Last year my starting five – four of them got scholarships because of Danville, playing in the tournament. So, yes, it’s a really good exposure event for my guys. And hopefully they play well and somebody recognizes them, and they get scholarships out of it.”}
The games are being played all this week at the Mary Miller Center at Danville Area Community College.
