[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 77 (Monday, May 16, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S2823]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               RECOGNIZING THE SLCC MEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM

 Mr. LEE. Mr. President, on March 14, 2016, the Salt Lake 
Community College men's basketball team walked into the Hutchinson 
Sports Arena in Hutchinson, KS, to play their first game in the NJCAA 
national tournament, the ``Big Dance'' for America's community 
colleges, ranked 13th out of 24 highly talented and competitive teams. 
Six days and five games later, the Salt Lake Bruins walked out as 
national champions, having bested the home team, Hutchinson Community 
College, 74 points to 64, in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 
6,000 fans.
  On behalf of the people of Utah, I commend the Salt Lake Community 
College 2015-2016 men's basketball team for their well-deserved 
championship. In particular, I applaud the Bruins not just because they 
won, but because of how they won.
  When a team is awarded the national title after winning 5 games in 6 
days, beating the opposition by an average of more than 18 points, as 
the Bruins did in Hutchinson, it can be tempting to look back at the 
season and see a preordained path to the championship. But, as head 
coach Todd Phillips surely knows, there are no guaranteed victories in 
basketball, only earned ones, even for a team as storied and successful 
as Salt Lake Community College.
  Indeed, the story of the Salt Lake Bruins' championship season is one 
not of assured success, but obstacles overcome.
  At the end of the regular season, the Bruins had lost five of their 
last seven games, finishing third in the Scenic West Athletic 
Conference, their worst performance in Coach Phillips' five seasons 
with the team.
  Entering the regional tournament on a three-game losing streak, the 
team seemed to be fraying at the edges, their season on the brink of 
irrelevance. Something wasn't right. The team was playing well below 
its potential, and everyone knew it.
  The easy response for the players and the coaches would have been to 
point fingers, assign blame, and begin looking forward to the fresh 
start always promised by the next season waiting around the corner.
  But that is not the Salt Lake way. Instead of giving up, the team 
doubled down, rebuilding their confidence and rededicating themselves 
to each other and to their season. And they did this as all good teams 
must do: together.
  The Salt Lake Bruins' always have plenty of stand-out athletes, and 
this season was no exception, but the 12-man roster that took home the 
national title truly played and won as a team.
  To the 16 men who earned this championship, as players and as 
coaches, congratulations. Your legendary season--and the teamwork that 
made it possible--is an inspiration to the Nation and one of the many 
reasons I am proud to call Utah home.

                          ____________________