SENATOBIA – Clinging to a three-point lead with two seconds left, Tremont Robinson swatted away a tying three-point attempt from Conner McKay to deny Northeast a chance to tie, as No. 12 Northwest held on for an 83-80 victory in the MACJC Semifinals on Wednesday night.

With the win, the Rangers remained unbeaten at Howard Coliseum at 14-0 and improved their overall record to 22-2. NEMCC fell to 18-7 on the season.

Northwest raced out to an early 10-0 lead, highlighted by a pair of threes from Robinson and Radarius Washington. The Rangers continued the hot hand by draining three consecutive three-pointers from Robinson, Therrell Gosier II and Jitaurious Gordon, pushing the lead to 19-6.

Although the Tigers finally picked up the tempo midway through the first half, Northwest led by double digits for the remainder of the half, stretching its lead to its highest point at 19 at the 7:24 mark and led 46-34 heading into the break.

Northwest extended the advantage out to 18 points off R. Washington's jumper, before Northeast began to slowly chip away at the lead. Antares Gwyn's layup at the 13:55 mark got the Tigers within eight and Jaquante Bell cut it down to 63-59 with 10:57 remaining.

Miles Washington's layup then sparked a 14-4 Ranger run, allowing Northwest to extend the margin back to double-digits at 77-63.

With just under three minutes remaining, however, Northeast made one last surge, outscoring the Rangers 17-6 down the stretch. After Robinson denied McKay's three attempt in the corner with two seconds left, the Tigers turned the ball over off the inbounds pass, allowing Alex Shepard to come up with the steal and the win.

Robinson led all scorers with 25 points and 11 assists, good for his second double-double of the season. M. Washington added a career-high 15 points off the bench, while Gordon and Gosier II provided 13 and 11, respectively.

Felix Hayes and Bryant Givens scored 17 points apiece to lead Northeast.

Northwest shot 45 percent from the floor and 35 percent from beyond the arc, compared to just 13 percent from the Tigers. The Rangers also outscored Northeast 17-4 in fast break points.

Northwest will now face Pearl River (20-4) in the MACJC Championship Thursday night at Howard Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game can be seen in its entirety on nwccrangers.com/watch.