DANVILLE, Ill. –  The Parkland College men's basketball team won over No. 12 seed Howard Community College (26-6) in the NJCAA DII National Tournament Quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 19. Drew Lewis Jr. led the offense with 14 points, and Chandler Jackson added six rebounds. 

Parkland (32-2) got the early lead, but the Dragons pulled ahead 20-19 with 7:52 on the clock in the first half. The Dragons got their largest lead of the half with two minutes left, but the Cobras continued to battle. Kris English tied it back up with a layup in the final seconds of the half to make the score 33-33, but the Dragons hit a last second three-pointer to give them the 36-33 advantage at half. The Dragons maintained the lead for the first 10 minutes of the second half, but the resilient Cobras made the score even again with 9:48 on the clock. The two teams continued to go back-and-forth, and two clutch free throws from Drew Lewis Jr. with 16 seconds on the clock gave the Cobras the 57-54 lead. A big block from Grant Chamberlain on defense gave Parkland the ball again with only eight seconds left, and the Cobras got the 60-54 win to advance to the NJCAA DII National Tournament Semifinals. 
 
Up next, the Cobras play in the Semifinals on Friday, March 21, at 6:00 pm in Danville, Illinois. Their opponent is TBD. 
 
Statistical Overview:
Drew Lewis Jr.: 14 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
Jaiden Martin: 11 points, 4 rebounds
Adam Squire: 11 points, 2 rebounds
Chandler Jackson: 9 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists
JaMonte Williams: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists