Herkimer, NY (March 14, 2026) – With the game tied at 50 with 5:09 remaining in the second half the top seeded Northern Essex Community College men's basketball team outscored the Richland Thunderducks 18-12 and secured the first national championship in the college's history by a 68-62 final score. The win was also a program record tying 33rd win of the season.
NECC got off to a hot start and jumped out to a 17-9 lead in the opening minutes before a brief cold shooting streak allowed Richland to tie the game at 17 and it remained a one possession contest for the remainder of the half with the Knights trailing at halftime 30-28.
Until the final two minutes of the half when the Knights began to extend the advantage, neither team led by more than 5 at the any point in the second half.
With the game tied at 50, a Yunosuke Matsuda (Tokyo, JP) layup gave the Knights a 52-50 lead with 4:58 remaining and following a defensive stop a Cristian Moscat (Lawrence) three-point basket gave the NECC a five-point advantage.
Alejandro Delgado (Haverhill) scored a game high 16 points along with eight rebounds as he was named to the All-Tournament team as he lead a trio of scorers in double figures. National Tournament MVP Alex Johnson (Worcester) followed up his 39 point performance in the semi-final with 12 points and Jay'von Depina (Brockton) added 12 points off the bench and was received the tournaments Small Man of the Tournament.
Christian Sanders (Boston) was also named to the All-Tournament and finished the championship game with eight points and eight rebounds.
Head coach Darren Stratton was named Coach of the Tournament.