Box Score SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Parkland men's basketball team locked up an automatic bid to the NJCAA National Tournament in a hard-fought 80-75 win over John Wood Community College in the Region 24 Championship game on Sunday afternoon. The Cobras are champions of Region 24 for the second time in three years and for the fourth time under head coach Anthony Figueroa. Savon Wykle (21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) led Parkland's offense, but the whole team stepped up to hit over 80% of their free throws in the win.
 
It was raining threes early, as each team's first two buckets came from behind the arc. The Cobras (20-7) led 16-10 after five minutes of play but the Blazers (18-14) cut that lead down to just two with 12:19 remaining in the first. Parkland closed out the half on a 20-6 run over the final five minutes and the Cobras led 49-26 at the break. John Wood struggled to start the second half and, after a Josh Rivers (14 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals) layup with 18:41 to go, Parkland took its largest lead of the game, 56-29. The Blazers responded with a six-minute, 14-2 run to shrink the Cobras' lead to 60-43. John Wood continued to chip away at Parkland's lead, primarily at the free throw line and the Cobras found themselves in a seven-point, 67-60 game with just under six minutes remaining. Both teams traded buckets down the stretch, but Parkland missed a few shots late and John Wood hit a three-pointer and cut the Cobras lead to just 77-74 with 48 seconds left in the championship game. The defense stepped up late, however, and A'Kieon Gill hit two important free throws with four seconds remaining and the Cobras secured the Region 24 Title in an exciting 80-75 game.
 
Scoring Summary:
Savon Wykle: 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
Daniel Reed: 18 points
Josh Rivers: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals
Marcus Johnson: 11 points, 5 rebounds,
A'Kieon Gill: 9 points, 7-8 FT, 3 assists
 
Up next, the Cobras await the release of the NJCAA National Tournament bracket to find out who their next opponent will be. The National Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 15th in Danville, Illinois.