Box Score TAYLORSVILLE, Utah (March 17, 2022) – The phrase has been used so many times that it is almost overused, yet it still is the best description around – 'survive-and-advance'. 
 
One of the best descriptions of postseason basketball continued to ring true for the No. 1 Salt Lake Community College Men's Basketball team Thursday, with the Bruins picking up their second close victory of the 2022 NJCAA Division-I Men's Basketball Tournament, advancing to Friday's semifinals in 'Hutch' with a 68-66 win over No. 8 Odessa College. Salt Lake will now face off against the winner of a game between No. 5 Chipola and No. 13 Harcum in Friday's semifinals.

Bruins coach Kyle Taylor said the thrilling victory was a sign of his team's mental toughness.

"We found a way again today," he said. "Our guys and their resilience, toughness and grit was on full display today. It wasn't pretty for the second consecutive game, but we came up with some clutch stops when we needed to. Odessa is really good and well-coached, and they played a great game."
 
In a game that went down to the wire, both SLCC and Odessa were tied at 33-33 at halftime, then traded leads throughout the second half until Jordan Brinson hit a three-point shot with 10:19 left to give the Bruins a lead they would never surrender. It wouldn't be a comfortable lead though, with SLCC never leading by more than eight points in the second half. 
 
Peril was never more than an arms' length away in the final seconds, with Odessa's Daniss Jenkins missing a late free-throw, then earning the offensive rebound with just four seconds remaining. From there, Jenkins missed a layup attempt, sending the Bruins to the NJCAA semifinals for the first time since 2016. This will be Salt Lake's fourth appearance in the NJCAA semifinals, with the Bruins winning national championships in 2009 and 2016.
 
Festus Ndumanya led the Bruins with 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting, while Doctor Bradley posted 12 points in reserve on 5-of-6 shooting. Jaquan Scott scored 10 points. 

"(Festus) was electric today," he said. "It was so good to see him making plays, hitting mid-range shots and scoring around the basket. Doctor Bradley stepped up big as well; he had three monster dunks and a lot of nice plays. Marion Humphrey, Chase Adams and Jordan Brinson were outstanding on defense, frustrating Odessa's best player all night. And finally, Jaquan Scott had an outstanding game as well. It was fun to see different guys step up today."
 
SLCC will play in the NJCAA semifinals at 5:00 p.m. CST at Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kan. The NJCAA championship game will be played Saturday.