Looking back at TC3 men’s hoops’ historic season

It’s been a while since the Tompkins Cortland Community College men’s basketball team got to experience postseason success. Entering this season, their last playoff win came in 2009. That drought finally came to an end in February.

On Feb. 19, the Panthers took down SUNY Adirondack 69-67 in the opening round of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region III playoffs. Head coach Tom Wilk knew it was going to take a full team effort to get over the hump and come out on top.

“On defense, it really takes all five guys that are on the floor to be keyed in and communicating and playing as hard as they possibly can,” Wilk said. “That was probably some of the best defense we had played all season as a complete unit. Luckily for us, a couple guys made really big plays down the stretch. We played in a lot of two-, three-point games, and it just sometimes comes down to the players making plays at the end, not the X’s and O’s and the coaches and whatnot.”

The win meant even more to Wilk, who actually played for the Panthers the last time they were victorious in the postseason. Now back at one of his alma maters (also attending Cazenovia College, SUNY Morrisville and SUNY Cortland), Wilk continues to revitalize Tompkins Cortland basketball.

“When you play somewhere, you have a lot of pride in that program, and you want to see them succeed,” Wilk said. “The program definitely hit some lulls, but I’m happy to see it kind of getting back on the map. I’m happy for all the alums that have played here to have some pride. We get Instagram messages from guys who have played in the past who are just excited to see us winning and doing things in the playoffs and making them proud.”

Wilk has been at the helm for two seasons and has brought so much success in such little time. Last season, the Panthers made the NJCAA Region III Tournament for the first time since 2014 and went one step further this time around with a first playoff victory in 14 years. Wilk said it’s taken a lot of work to bring a winning culture back to Tompkins Cortland.

“Most junior college coaches out there are part-time coaches,” Wilk said. “They have other jobs, so managing another job and also trying to be as successful as we can, it’s a lot of work. It definitely makes you happy when you put in that work and you see it pay off… After we won against Adirondack, they’re throwing water in the air in the locker room and jumping up and down. Those are the things you remember down the road, so I’m really excited just for them to experience those things and hopefully more wins like that on the horizon.”

The driving force for the Panthers has been Joel Davis. The freshman burst onto the scene, averaging a double-double of 13.8 points per game and 11.7 rebounds per game, leading the team in both categories. His impressive displays earned him a spot on the Mid-State Athletic Conference all-conference team, the first Panther to do so since 2019.

“He’s a great kid,” Wilk said. “He played mostly down low for us as a center, but he’s only six feet, five inches, so I think the thing that really makes him special is he has great footwork. You don’t really see in this day and age—with three-point shooting and whatnot—guys that are able to get the ball down low and use their feet and use post moves to score. He’s relentless down there. Rebounding is just about hustle and effort, and he gets after it down there.”

While Davis recorded 13 points and 11 rebounds against Adirondack, the star of the show was Tysheen Lott. Despite battling a foot injury late in the season, the sophomore appeared to be back in form against the Timberwolves, pouring in a season-high 24 points.

“He’s what I call a little bit of a gamer,” Wilk said. “In that playoff game, he elevated himself to another level. It was loud in the gym, people were yelling and screaming, and it heightens your senses. He flourishes in those kinds of environments.”

The Panthers’ time in the Region III tournament didn’t last long, as they fell to Mohawk Valley 85-42 in the quarterfinals. But the future is still looking bright for Tompkins Cortland men’s basketball, and their main goal remains the same: win the Region III championship and make the national tournament.

“I think we’re really building towards that [goal],” Wilk said. “I was down at nationals and two teams from our region made it. We played both teams pretty close. We got a good returning cast of players, and we’ll hopefully add a few more guys to help us and go back at it.”