SENATOBIA – In a game that featured 11 lead changes and five ties, Northwest capped off a 54 percent shooting night with a hard-fought 86-79 win over Southwest Mississippi to open the 2011-12 basketball season Tuesday night.
Four scorers finished in double figures for both teams, led by 18 points from Northwest sophomore Darius Woods and 18 from Southwest's Wesley Blackmon.
Northwest took advantage of its size for most of the night, scoring 44 points in the paint and pleasing the home crowd with a trio of monster dunks from Tevin Moore and Jordan Hulsey in the opening 10 minutes of the first half.
Southwest used stifling pressure to turn the Rangers over 14 times in the first half and picked up 10 steals that led to easy buckets in transition.
The Bears led by 12 with 4:35 to play in the opening period before Northwest closed with three consecutive 3-pointers from Kendrick Moore, Tevin Moore and A.J. Cunningham to pull within 44-39 at the break.
Northwest rallied to take the lead at the 15:32 mark of the second half, 51-48, after back-to-back layups from Woods and Hulsey, but Southwest came right back with a 3-pointer from Parker Moore to tie it and retook the lead on a Blackmon layup.
Southwest fought off several ties and maintained a small lead the ensuing 12 minutes, until Woods' 3-pointer at the 3:25 mark gave Northwest a 75-74 lead. After a bucket by Mark Bridgewater gave Southwest the lead back by a point, Tevin Moore's layup off a Woods assist gave the Rangers the lead for good.
Northwest trailed for a total of 27 minutes in the game, but closed strong with an 11-3 run to take an 86-79 victory – their third-straight season-opening win under Jimmy Adams.
In addition to Woods' 18 points, T. Moore finished with 15 points, Hulsey added 17 and DeMarcus McVay chipped in 13. Woods also dished out a game-high nine assists, and Cunningham added a career-high six blocks as the Rangers notched nine swats on the night.
Northwest will return to the hardwood next Tuesday, Nov. 8 against Mid-South. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
