SENATOBIA – Behind a career-high 28-point night from Jitaurious Gordon, Northwest used a 17-4 run over the final five minutes of the first half and never trailed again in a 73-66 victory against Holmes on Thursday night at Howard Coliseum.

Northwest snapped a three-game division losing skid with the win, moving to 9-6 overall and 3-3 in the division. Holmes fell to 11-5 and 3-2 with the loss.

After opening the game with a 6-1 advantage, the Rangers fell victim to a 13-0 run from Holmes and quickly fell behind 14-6 with 14:46 to go in the first half.

Holmes continued to outmatch the Northwest defense, as the Bulldogs lead swelled to its highest point of 13 off Tanorrio Ransburgh's three-pointer through the halfway point of the first half.

From there, the Rangers started to chip away, as Quez Williamson knocked down back-to-back shots from beyond the arc that cut the Holmes lead down to seven, 24-17.

Trailing by five with 4:01 left before halftime, Gordon and Nick Edwards sparked the big Ranger run with a pair of three-pointers that allowed Northwest to retake a 32-31 lead. The big 17-4 spark sent the Rangers to the break with a 41-33 advantage.

Despite seeing Holmes come back within three with 13:57 to go in regulation, Northwest responded with 9-1 scoring burst, highlighted by a three-pointer from Mike Robinson.

Holmes never went away and remained within striking distance, trailing by 11 or less for the remainder of the contest. The Rangers always seemed to have an answer though, as Northwest never allowed the Bulldogs to make a run down the stretch, instead holding on for the big home victory.

Both teams finished nearly even in every scoring category, including a dead even 43 percent shooting percentage. Holmes also finished with a slight edge in points off turnovers (20-18), bench points (19-16), second chance points (11-8) and in the paint (36-32).

Williamson was the only other Ranger in double figures, scoring 15 points with seven rebounds. Edwards and Kendrick Fountain also finished with eight points apiece.

Holmes was led by 13 points apiece from Czar Perry and Kassim Nicholson, with Nicholson adding 12 rebounds for a double-double.

Northwest will step out of MACJC competition on Monday, with a 6 p.m. road contest at Arkansas State Mid-South. In the previous meeting between the two teams, the former 19th-ranked team edged Northwest 71-70 in Senatobia.