While the rest of the nation prepares to see which team will win the NCAA basketball championship this weekend, the 6th District of North Carolina is already basking in the glow of a national basketball title.

U.S. Rep. Howard Coble, who represents Moore County in the U.S. House, took time last week to brag to his colleagues about Sandhills Community College winning the 2012 National Junior College Athletic Association Division III championship.

Coble placed a congratulatory statement into the Congressional Record, the official journal of House and Senate proceedings, to recognize the Flyers’ national title.

“Basketball is so important to the fabric of North Carolina,” Coble said, “that we are always excited when one of our schools does well. When it’s a school located in the 6th District, we get even more excited. I wanted to share that excitement with my House colleagues, so I did a little bragging about the Flyers.”

Below is the complete text of Rep. Coble’s remarks congratulating the Sandhills Flyers on their national championship:

“Mr. Speaker, North Carolina has a long and distinguished list of college basketball National Champions. This year, however, there is only one school from the Old North State that will earn the right to hoist a National Championship banner. No, I don’t mean the North Carolina State University Wolfpack, nor the Duke University Blue Devils, and not even the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Please join me, Mr. Speaker, in congratulating the Sandhills Community College Flyers upon their rise to the 2012 National Junior College Athletic Association Division III Championship.

“Their 30-6 season ended with a commanding defeat of Cedar Valley College, from Dallas, Texas, by a score of 101-86. Outstanding play from guard Daquain Towns, tournament MVP, and the tremendous coaching of Mike Apple led the Flyers, in only their third season, past teams in the playoffs from the Bronx (N.Y.), Brookdale (N.J.) and Prince George’s County (Md.).

“On March 17, the Sandhills Flyers became the first team from North Carolina to win a Division III National Championship, and our office is proud to represent this fine group of young men. Each member of the Flyers deserves recognition for this outstanding achievement, and they are: Michael Collins, T.J. Gill, Raheem Jolliffe, Chris Morrison, Daquain Towns, Dre Huntley, Chris Vinson, Trevor Cole, Mike Dorsey, Raheem Washington, Michael Robinson, T.J. Jones, Tramaine Pride, Louis Craft, Kermeriaz Harrington, Erick Ewing, Markell Lotharp, Demontre Jones, coach Mike Apple, and athletic director Aaron Denton.

“Congratulations also go out to Dr. John Dempsey and the Sandhills Community College family for putting together an organization that preserves North Carolina’s premier basketball tradition while adding a new National Champion to our history books.”