Courtesy of HutchCC Athletics
No. 1 Hutchinson (33-0) vs. No. 16 Cochise (26-7)
NJCAA Tournament Second Round
When: Wednesday, March 26, 2024
Tipoff: 3:30 p.m. CT (2:30 p.m. MT)
Where: Ford Wyoming Center, Casper, WY
Radio: KHMY-FM (93.1), 3:15 p.m. - Sean Boston (PBP)
Video: ESPN+
X: @bluedragonsport
BLUE DRAGON GAME NOTES (PDF Format)
The No. 1-ranked Hutchinson Community College women's basketball team opens its run at the 2024 NJCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament with the Cochise College Apaches on Wednesday.
Game time for the No. 1 Blue Dragons (33-0) and 16th-seeded Apaches (26-7) will be at 3:30 p.m. CT (2:30 p.m MT) at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper, Wyoming.
The game will be broadcast live on KHMY-FM (93.1) with Sean Boston (play-by-play) calling the action beginning at 3:15 p.m. (Hutchinson time). All tournament games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with next Monday's championship game to by televised on ESPNU.
The Blue Dragons will be making their 11th national tournament appearance, the first since 2022. The Blue Dragons are officially a 12-time national tournament qualifier, but the 2021 was wiped out by the Coronavirus Pandemic.
After winning the Region 6 Tournament - a 54-52 win over Butler on March 16 - the Blue Dragons earned their third national tournament opening-round bye and the first as the No. 1 overall seed. The Dragons have been a No. 2 overall seed three times (2012, 2014 and 2015).
The Blue Dragons are 3-2 all-time in second-round games and are 7-3 in opening games of a national tournament. the Blue Dragons are 20-12 all-time in the NJCAA Tournament.
Led by 2024 Jayhawk Conference Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year and Region VI Tournament Most Valuable Player Kiki Smith, the Blue Dragons roll into the national tournament undefeated for the fifth time in team history, joining the 1977, 2012, 2014 and 2015 teams.
The Blue Dragons are riding a 33-game winning streak, third longest in team history.
The Blue Dragons meet Region 1 champion Cochise for the first time ever. The Dragons are 1-1 against Region 1 teams in the national tournament, going 1-1 against Central Arizona in 2012 and 2013.
Cochise won its opening-round game national tournament game over Chattanooga State 72-43 on Tuesday.
The Hutchinson-Cochise winner will meet the No. 8 Seed New Mexico Junior College/No. 8 seed Trinity Valley winner in the quarterfinals on Thursday.