Riverland men’s basketball earns No. 2 seed, quarterfinal bye in NJCAA tournament

Riverland Community College’s men’s basketball team landed the No. 2 seed in the NJCAA National Tournament and went straight into the quarterfinals, the kind of bracket position that changes everything for a title chase. The Blue Devils did not just get in. They got one of the clearest paths available, with a first-round bye that cut down the number of games they had to survive and gave them extra time to prepare for the bracket ahead.

That seeding says Riverland earned more than a good record. It posted a 31-3 overall mark, went 11-1 in conference play, finished with a .912 winning percentage and went 14-1 at home, numbers that explain why the selection committee slotted the Blue Devils near the top of the field. Riverland Community College Athletics also noted the program is headed back to the NJCAA National Tournament for the fourth time in five years, a stretch that separates steady contenders from one-year surprises.

The bye matters as much as the seed. In a national tournament, every extra game increases the chance of foul trouble, fatigue and a cold shooting night ending the run early. Riverland skipped the opening round and advanced directly to the quarterfinals, which meant Derek Hand and his staff could spend their time on scouting, matchup prep and recovery instead of spending energy on an early knockout game. That is the real value of being seeded second: the bracket starts bending in your favor before a ball is tipped.

The championship was set for Herkimer College in Herkimer, New York, with the NJCAA listing March 13-16 for the 2025-26 Division III Men’s Basketball Championship. Riverland’s release described the trip as a March 11-16 stay in Upstate New York, underscoring a full-tournament commitment that began before opening day and stretched through the title rounds. Herkimer College’s site put the event in the same place, at the same site, confirming the Blue Devils would be playing on the sport’s biggest junior-college stage.

For Riverland, the seeding turned a strong season into a real national championship conversation. A 31-3 team with a quarterfinal bye is not just showing up to participate. It is being treated like a program expected to survive the bracket and make the last weekend matter.