#TCCBasketball vs. NWF State Preview

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (January 18, 2018) – A rare Thursday night Panhandle Conference doubleheader is on tap for Tallahassee Community College's men's and women's basketball teams. 

The Eagles will be in Niceville, Fla., to face Northwest Florida State College at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. eastern, a day later than originally scheduled thanks to another round of winter weather that moved across the Florida Panhandle on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Tallahassee and Northwest Florida State's women will open the doubleheader in a national Top 5 showdown. 

Losses by No. 4 Northwest Florida State and No. 5 Trinity Valley (Texas) Community College allowed the Eagles to leapfrog both and into the No. 4 spot in this week's NJCAA rankings, up two spots from last week. 

Northwest Florida State dropped to No. 5. 

Thursday's winner will get a leg up in the race for one of the Panhandle's two postseason berths and avoid falling two games back in the loss column of first-place Gulf Coast State College. 

In the nightcap, Tallahassee will be in bounce-back mode following last Tuesday's 87-71 loss at home to Chipola College. The task will be anything but easy. 

Northwest Florida State is 20-0 and ranked No. 1 in the country. Equally impressive is the Raiders' 18-game winning streak in league play that dates back to 2016. 

The Eagles will be at full strength on Thursday with the return of forward Corey Douglas, who was inactive against Chipola after sustaining a concussion in the PC opener at Gulf Coast State. 

Tallahassee vs. Northwest Florida State Women's Capsule

• Tip-off: 6:30 p.m. eastern
• How to follow: Live stats | Live video
• Records: Tallahassee (16-1, 1-1 PC), Northwest Florida State (17-1, 2-1)
• Rankings: Tallahassee (NJCAA No. 4, Region 8 No. 3); Northwest Florida State (NJCAA No. 5, Region 8 No. 2)
• Head-to-head: Northwest Florida State leads 51-23
• At Northwest Florida State: Northwest Florida State leads 27-7
• Streak: 3 by Tallahassee
• Last meeting: Tallahassee 95, Northwest Florida State 67 (2/25/17 at Tallahassee, Fla.)
• Miscellaneous: Tallahassee is 5-1 all-time when ranked No. 4, the lone loss coming at Gulf Coast State on January 6…the Eagles are just 3-16 when playing teams ranked No. 5…this marks the 15^th time Tallahassee and Northwest Florida State have met as nationally-ranked opponents; the Raiders hold an 8-6 advantage in those games.

Tallahassee vs. Northwest Florida State Men's Capsule

• Tip-off: 8:30 p.m. eastern
• How to follow: Live stats | Live video
• Records: Tallahassee (14-4, 1-1 PC), Northwest Florida State (20-0, 3-0)
• Rankings: Tallahassee (NJCAA RV, Region 8 No. 6); Northwest Florida State (NJCAA No. 1, Region 8 No. 1)
• Head-to-head: Northwest Florida State leads 43-37
• At Northwest Florida State: Northwest Florida State leads 25-14
• Streak: 5 by Northwest Florida State
• Last meeting: Northwest Florida State 64, Tallahassee 59 (2/25/17 at Tallahassee, Fla.)
• Miscellaneous: Tallahassee is 4-8 all-time when playing the No.1 team in the country, 2-2 against a top-ranked Northwest Florida State team.