SENATOBIA – Leading by eight with 11 minutes remaining, Northwest was unable to hold on to the momentum down the stretch, as East Mississippi had four players score in double figures during the Rangers' 68-62 loss on Thursday evening.

Northwest dropped its third straight division contest, falling to 9-5 overall and 1-3 in the MACJC North. EMCC remained unbeaten in division play at 4-0 while improving to 11-4 on the season.

From the start, it seemed Northwest was heading for a blowout victory as the Rangers took a 16-3 advantage, with Tomias Brand capping off the extensive run with a thunderous fast break dunk at the midway point of the first half.

Despite earning the early 13-point lead, Northwest was unable to bury EMCC with any further deficit as the Lions began to fight their way back in it, sparked by back-to-back three-pointers from Jakorie Smith and Donte Powers that cut the lead down to seven.

Trailing 20-11, East Mississippi embarked on a 10-0 run as Quamontae Monfort's layup gave the Lions their first lead of 21-20 with 3:25 left before halftime.

East Mississippi pushed the lead to five but Northwest never allowed the Lions to pull away, thanks in part to the efforts of Jakobi Pearson and a three from R.J. Duhart that tied the game at 28 just before halftime.

Late baskets from Arecko Gipson, Jr. sent the Rangers to the locker room down 31-28 at the break, but Pearson and Duhart would open the second half with two quick baskets to give the lead back to Northwest, 33-31.

After a two-minute span that included five lead changes and two ties, Northwest went on a 9-0 run to take a 48-40 lead with 11:35 remaining. Once again, however, the Lions clawed back yet again, eventually retaking the lead for good on a layup from Monfort with 4:18 left in regulation.

Northwest did its best to hang around over the final four minutes as Kavonte Tunstall and James Richards III scored six points apiece, but the Lions outscored the Rangers 13-8 down the stretch to hold on to the 68-62 victory.

Pearson led Northwest with 17 points followed by 13 from Tunstall. Duhart also reached double figures with 11 points and seven rebounds.

East Mississippi was led by a 19-point, six rebound performance from Gipson, Jr. and an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double from Monfort. Smith also fell just shy of a double-double with 11 points and nine boards.

Northwest shot 33 percent from the floor with EMCC finishing at 37 percent shooting. The Rangers also shot 59 percent from the charity stripe compared to 72 percent from the Lions.

Northwest will look to snap its three-game losing skid on Tuesday, Jan. 21 against Mississippi Delta. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from Howard Coliseum with links to live stats and broadcast available at nwccrangers.com.