SENATOBIA - Although tomorrow marks a new chapter for the Northwest men's basketball program, the same goals remain for head coach Shane Oakley.

Now entering his fourth overall season as the Rangers' head coach (including his 2018-19 interim stint), Oakley has guided the Rangers to the postseason in two of his three seasons so far. Last year, Northwest battled to an 8-8 overall record and the quarterfinals of the expanded Region 23 Tournament, earning a road victory at Jones College.

"Our goal is to always set ourselves up to make the playoffs," Oakley said. "You always want to win the whole thing, but everything is a little different now with the conference alignment. So instead of winning the North Division or winning it all, you have to get into the top eight or whatever it is now. Winning the league is a lofty goal and sometimes you fall short, but we're always going to play up-tempo and do what we need to do to go as far as we can."

Speaking of the new conference alignment, the MACCC no longer consists of North and South divisions for men's or women's basketball. Each team across the state will play every conference team once in the regular season, aside from some non-conference games occurring early in the season against traditional division rivals. 

Although Oakley admits that the conference schedule will become a little more challenging, the Rangers have no intentions of backing down from the challenge.

"I have mixed emotions about it," Oakley said. "I hate that we're not playing our traditional division opponents twice, at least not in true conference competition. If you look at our schedule, there's not any warm-up games anywhere. We open with Coahoma in a non-division game right out of the gate, then we go to East Mississippi, and there's no guarantee that you go 2-0 to start. It's going to be tough, but we have what we have and we're going to be ready each and every night."

Although the Rangers lost leading scorer DeAntoni Gordon and a big forward in Carlos Curry to the Division I ranks, Northwest does bring back a handful of third-year sophomores for some rare veteran experience. With COVID-19 giving many the option to play an extra year, the Rangers will have everyday starters James Richards III and Kavonte Tunstall back in the lineup, along with Quen Kyles, who redshirted his freshman season in 2019-20.

Adding to the mix of returning players are Jaylon Sanders, Cori Bell and T.J. Hannah, and all five provide their own qualities for Oakley's club.

"It's all about maturity more than anything else," Oakley said, regarding his five returners. "At this level, right around the time you get your players where you want them, they're gone. Even though this is a rare circumstance, we have the opportunity to have three guys back for a third year. They've matured and worked on their game and they understand the day-to-day grind of playing JUCO basketball. Those are things that they can relay to our newcomers, so when you get into competition, these things don't have to be new to them. Bringing them back doesn't do anything but help you as a team."

Richards and Tunstall have been mainstays in the starting rotation since arriving at Northwest in 2019. Standing at 6-2 and 170 pounds, Richards averaged 8.2 points per game in 16 games last season, earning three games in double figures. Tunstall, a native of Byhalia, averaged 5.4 points per game as a guard/forward combo.

Additionally, Sanders brings back a wealth of experience after finishing as the Rangers' third-leading scorer last season. In 16 games, the 6-5, 175-pound guard averaged 9.6 points per games and reached double figures six times, including a season-high 17 points in a double overtime loss to Holmes on March 4. Bell and Hannah also earned valuable minutes last season, with Hannah fighting through a now-healed hip injury.

Adding to the excitement of this year's squad is a pair of highly-touted freshmen, Isaiah Gaines and Ethan Pickett. Gaines, a 6-7, 225-pound forward from Pensacola, Fla., turned heads in this summer's JUCOReport.com showcase, as did Pickett, a 6-4 guard from Canton, Ga.

"The first thing people will notice is that they're great players," Oakley said, on the out-of-state duo. "Isaiah can really handle it, shoot it and guard all five positions. Ethan is an athletic guy that can play anywhere and get things done where needed. They're both really tough and athletic, but the best part of them is that they're also great people and great teammates. They're humble and we're hoping that transitions to the rest of our team as well."

Adding to the mix is Olive Branch native and Pearl River CC transfer Joseph Cooper, and Kansas City, Mo. native London Taylor. {{{{{{

"(Cooper) comes from a good Pearl River program and has picked up some great experience," Oakley said. "London is an athletic guy that we found late, and he's sneaky athletic. He shoots the ball really well and I think we really got a great find in both of those guys."

Guards Zandon Haralson (Center Hill), Braxton Taylor (Senatobia), Ra'Mond Tuggles (Byhalia) and forward Kareem Thompson (Horn Lake) round out the newcomers on this year's roster, all of whom are expected to make valuable contributions.

Northwest will open the season on Monday, November 1 at Coahoma. The game is scheduled for a 6 P.M. tipoff from Clarksdale, with coverage available at ((())). The Rangers are scheduled to host SAU Tech for their home opener next Monday, November 8 at 7:30 P.M.

All Northwest home games will be carried on Ranger TV (nwccrangers.com) and Facebook Live, with Michael Gross or Gary Darby on the call.