YUMA, Ariz. - The Arizona Western women's basketball team is slotted as the No. 17 seed in the NJCAA DI national tournament and will face the No. 16 seed New Mexico to kick off the playoffs in Lake Charles, Louisiana, on Tuesday, March 24th. The Lady Matadors and the Thunderbirds will tip-off at 8:00 a.m. MT in the first of 23 games to be played at Townsley Law Arena from March 24th through the 31st.

"If you know our preseason's or anything about me, Chelsea Dewey, it's get your booty out of bed," Arizona Western head coach Chelsea Dewey said. "We've practiced at different times all year. We've had some crazy travel this year and crazy game times. I think we're prepared for the early game time by our preseason schedule."

The showdown is a rematch between the two teams that squared off on November 6th, 2025. At the time, NMJC was No. 9 in the country and fell to Arizona Western 83-81 in OT. 

Should Arizona Western get by New Mexico again, the next matchup would be against the #1 overall seed, Butler Community College. After knocking off the No. 1 team in the country, Eastern Arizona, in the Region I final, coach Dewey says the focus isn't on being giant killers, the focus is on New Mexico Junior College. 

"It's one game at a time," Dewey said. "We'll approach that once we get there. Right now the focus is one New Mexico. If we look too far ahead, it'll get away from us. It's one game at a time and we only get one opportunity. We have to put it all on the floor."

Team captain and ACCAC "Player of the Year" Mable Doumbia will make her second consecutive trip to the national tournament. Doumbia shares what she learned in her freshman year that she can now share with her young teammates. 

"The national tournament is a lot different than the regular season," Doumbia said. "We have to play hard. We have to give more as a whole team in the national tournament. Give 100 percent and don't leave anything behind. We're playing the best teams in the country, the best teams from their conferences, we need to come together and play hard as a team."

Doumbia also shared how she prepared for her sophomore season after her freshman year and how it elevated her game to become the ACCAC "Player of the Year."

"I worked on my offense. I worked on my defense, and I worked on my energy," Doumbia said. "I love basketball, I just enjoy playing it. Coach Dewey pushed me, she's the one who pushed me hard and she wanted the best for me every day."

Doumbia is the lone returner from last year's national team which means 11 players on Arizona Western's roster will make their first ever national appearance, including guard Kimora Jenkins.

"Everything will be much more intense," Jenkins said. "We're still here to have fun. It felt good to beat Eastern Arizona, it gave our team confidence that we can handle it. It was a good boost for us."

The Lady Matadors will fly to Louisiana this weekend in preparation for Tuesday's early tip-off. This makes back-to-back appearances for Arizona Western in the national tournament and third in the past five seasons. It also marks the second time in three years under head coach Chelsea Dewey.