Montgomery County Represented In NCAA Tournaments

This week, the sports world turns to March Madness and the NCAA basketball tournament. While these games are being played around the country, there is a local flavor that can be brought to it, as Montgomery County is represented by 10 players who played high school ball in the county.

Jamal Olasewere led the Long Island University Blackbirds to a Northeastern Conference tournament championship and a 15-seed in the East region of the NCAA tournament. Olaswere was an 09 graduate of , where he helped lead the team to the first two of their three straight state titles. In his senior year at Springbrook, he averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds per game. As a sophomore at LIU, Olaswere averaged 12.9 points and nearly seven rebounds per game. He started 30 of 32 games this season and was tied for the team lead in points. After scoring 31 points against Robert Morris in the NEC title game, he was named the NEC tournament Most Valuable Player.

C.J. Garner . Garner also graduated from Springbrook, in 2008 after Springbrook's first of three state titles. He was named team MVP in his senior season at the Silver Spring school. He first attended the University of South Alabama, where he started 16 games as a freshman. After that season, he transferred to LIU, where he had to sit out last season under the NCAA's transfer rules. This season, he started all 32 games for the Blackbirds at point guard. He dished out 110 assists this season, second on the team. The Blackbirds, who are playing in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1997, have a tough test in the first round, as they face ACC powerhouse North Carolina. Olaswere and Garner will play at 7:15 p.m. on Friday on CBS

Isaiah Armwood will be playing in the tournament for the Villanova Wildcats. Armwood was an 2009 graduate of  in Rockville. In his senior year at Montrose, Armwood averaged 12 points and eight rebounds per game. After a marginal season as a freshman, Armwood played in 31 of Villanova's 32 games this year, and started eight. He only scored 2.5 points per game, however, he averaged nearly four rebounds per game, good for third on the team. He also helped lead the Wildcats over the University of Maryland in January, grabbing a season-high 13 rebounds against the Terps.

Armwood is joined on Villanova by fellow Montrose Christian alumnus Mouphtaou Yarou. Yarou, a 2009 graduate of Montrose, started all 32 games at center. He was fifth on the team in scoring, averaging over eight points per game and second in rebounding with nearly seven rebounds per game. He led the team in rebounding 12 games this season, including a season high of 16 against UCLA. The Wildcats earned a 9 seed in the East region, where they will play George Mason in the first round. Armwood and Yarou can be seen playing in the first round at 2:10 p.m. on Friday on TNT.

Terrence Ross is a role player on the University of Washington, which earned the seventh seed in the East region. He played for Montrose Christian from 2008 to 2010. He had originally committed to Maryland, but decided to decommit and sign with Washington in his senior year of high school. As a freshman for the Huskies, he played in 32 games, starting three. Ross averaged 7.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. He had what might have been his best game of the season in the Pac-10 conference championship game against Arizona. He scored 16 points to help lead the Huskies to the Pac-10 title. Ross can be seen playing against Georgia at 9:45 p.m. on Friday on CBS.

The final player from Montrose is Josh Hairston, who plays for Duke University. Hairston, a 2010 graduate of Montrose Christian, was a role player on the Blue Devils and played 25 games this season. He scored 36 points and 31 rebounds this season in limited time. Duke earned the top seed in the West region, and will play Hampton at 3:10 p.m. on Friday on truTV.

Ben Hazel plays for the Princeton Tigers, who won the Ivy League to earn a spot in the tournament. Hazel was a 2010 graduate of Good Counsel. He scored 16 points per game for Good Counsel in his senior year. As a freshman, he played 18 games for the Tigers, and averaged nearly seven minutes per game. He had a season high of seven points in a game against Brown this season. Princeton, who reached the NCAA tournament on a buzzer beater against Harvard, drew the 13-seed in the East region. They will face the University of Kentucky at 2:45 p.m. on Thursday on CBS.

Markel Starks plays for Georgetown University. Starks was a 2010 graduate of . At Georgetown Prep, Starks scored 25 points per game and averaged eight assists in his senior year. A freshman now for the Hoyas, Starks played in 29 games and averaged nearly 10 minutes per game. He scored a season-high six points against Syracuse earlier this month. Georgetown earned the sixth seed in the Southwest region, and will play Virginia Commonwealth in the first round. They play Friday at 9:50 p.m. on TNT.

In addition to the eight men, there are two women competing in the NCAA women's tournament, which starts on Saturday.

Tarik Hislop helped the James Madison women's basketball team win the Colonial Athletic Association title and reach the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Hislop was a 2009 graduate of Paint Branch. She helped lead the Panthers to the Maryland State title, and was named Maryland Player of the Year in 2008. She holds the record for most points scored at , with 1,710. In her freshman season at James Madison, she was named to the CAA All-Rookie team and was second on the team in scoring. Now in her sophomore year, Hislop started all 33 games. She was third on the team in scoring with 10.7 points per game. She helped JMU win the conference championship game against Delaware, scoring 13 points. James Madison earned the eleventh seed in the Dayton region, and will play Oklahoma in the first round. They play at 2:45 p.m. on Sunday  in Charlottesville, VA.

Monica McNutt plays for Georgetown. McNutt was a 2007 graduate of . At Holy Cross, she averaged 11 points per game and led the team in three-point percentage. In her junior year at Georgetown, she was named to the All Big East Second Team. Now a senior captain, she was second on the team in scoring with 10.4 points per game, and was an All Big East Honorable Mention. She had a season and career-high 27 points in a game against Syracuse earlier this season. Georgetown earned the fifth seed in the Philadelphia region. They play Princeton in the first round at 2:50 p.m. on Sunday in College Park, MD.