Rock Valley College is hosting the NJCAA DIII Womens Basketball National Tournament from March 15-17. RVC kicks off the tournament as the number one seed 20-12 against number eight seed Rowan-Gloucester (NJ) 24-3 at one o’ clock.

The Rock Valley Women’s Basketball team put on a clinic against Columbus State Community College during the Women’s NJCAA Division III District B Championship game.

Early on in the first quarter, RVC got to a hot start with the help of some easy three-point shots and great ball movement. They ended the first quarter with a 9 point lead, 18-9. Not much changed heading into the second quarter. Columbus State’s poor defense allowed for open shooters on almost every possession. Whether it was splitting the defense or transitioning on turnovers to easy corner shots, RVC was doing everything right. The first half ended with RVC at one point, having a 20 point lead and 7 made 3 pointers.

After returning from halftime, RVC remained hot and wanted to put an exclamation point on the latter part of the game. Back-to-back 3 and 2 pointers extended their lead to 59-31 and they didn’t let up. Their defense on the other end proved to help them because Columbus State didn’t want to let up anymore points than they already were. Foul trouble for their opponents meant more easy points for RVC going 5-6 from the charity stripe. Along with the free throws, RVC put a monstrous 3 blocks and 14 steals. As we entered the fourth quarter, the Golden Eagles got comfortable and shot another 6 three pointers eventually giving them the largest lead of the game with a 43 point difference.

The nail in the coffin for this game was the relentless offense that RVC put forth. The Golden Eagles pulled away with the win ending with a score of 92-53. This victory will advance the Golden Eagles into the National Championship tournament and will attempt to win their 5th title.

Key Takeaways

• CS had a limited bench which allowed for less substitution which lead to tired players on the floor
• Consistent and unrelenting 3PA secured a comfortable lead which lead to, you guessed it, more 3 point attempts (13-31) At this point, RVC had nothing to lose so they played more relaxed and felt more confident shooting 31 shots from beyond the arc.
• CS main downfall was a joint lack of defense and poor communication. RVC passed the ball very often inside and outside the paint. Good coverage would have prevented getting the ball to open shooters and making easy points in the paint. Something is seriously wrong if your FTM is close to your FGM (13-19). This is symptomatic of bigger problems. This indicates that you’re relying too heavily on foul trouble on the opposing team and struggling to efficiently shooting the ball (19-58!!). Turning over the ball 25 times and being outdone in assists, rebounds, and steals, helps too.

Editors Note: Pictures copyright property of RVC Valley Forge.