SENATOBIA – Jerome Bynum's three-pointer floated in with six seconds to go to force a 96-96 tie for SAU Tech but Jakobi Pearson could not be stopped in the end, hitting the game-winning three at the buzzer against three defenders to clinch a 99-96 victory on Monday evening.

Northwest moved to 7-2 overall and improved its home record to 7-0 on the season.

From the opening tip, both teams made it clear that the game would be settled in wire-to-wire fashion, with four ties in the opening 3:20 of the contest.

After a pair of back-to-back threes from Bynum and Jaland Mitchell gave SAU Tech a 17-10 lead, the outside shooting opened up for both teams. Deveon Miller drained the Rangers' first three off an assist from Milton McGee, Jr. with 12:42 left in the first half, slicing the deficit to 20-17.

Although the Rockets would stretch their lead to 10 with 7:38 left, Tomias Brand sparked a 9-3 run for Northwest that was highlighted by two big shots from beyond the arc, allowing the Rangers to pull within four, 39-35.

With a Kavonte Tunstall three and a layup from Pearson, the Rangers briefly regained 43-42 lead with 4:24 left to play in the half. Both teams would trade baskets over the final four minutes as SAU Tech held the slight 55-52 advantage at the break.

Northwest stretched its lead to 10 with 7:51 remaining in regulation, but the Rockets would gain new life on Immanuel Anderson's breakaway dunk that sparked an 8-2 run and brought SAU Tech back within four, 88-84.

Northwest led 94-89 with under four minutes to go before both teams encountered scoring droughts of nearly two and a half minutes. Sheldon Stevens would break the silence with a free throw for the Rockets, which was followed by Anderson's three-pointer that trimmed the Ranger lead to 94-93 with 35 seconds left.

Tunstall made it a 96-93 advantage thanks to a goaltending call on the Rockets with 23 seconds to go. On the other end of the floor, Bynum would tie up the contest with his three-pointer before Pearson hit the game-winner at the buzzer, denying overtime for SAU Tech.

Four players from both teams finished in double figures, led by 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds from Pearson. R.J. Duhart also collected a double-double with his 24-point, 14-rebound effort as Tunstall and James Richards III totaled 18 and 10 points, respectively.

Bynum had 22 to lead the Rockets, followed by 19 from Anderson, 18 from Malik Miller and 17 from Mitchell.

Three-point shooting was the story for both clubs as the Rangers shot 44 percent from beyond the arc, compared to 48 percent from SAU Tech.

Northwest outscored SAU Tech 24-6 in bench points but were bested by the Rockets in points off turnovers, 19-17.

Northwest will close out the first half of the 2019-20 season with its division opener at Itawamba on Monday, Dec. 9.