SENATOBIA - On an evening that featured less-than-stellar shooting from both teams, Northwest saw its four-game winning streak come to an unceremonious end with a 79-68 loss to No. 24 Northeast on Thursday evening.
Joseph Cooper's career-high 26-point performance highlighted the evening for the Rangers, who dropped to 10-3 overall and 3-2 in conference play. Northeast improved to 12-2 on the season with the victory, while jumping to 4-1 against MACCC competition.
Kylan Blackmon opened the game with a three-pointer for the Tigers, but Northwest would drag out a 15-4 run over the next eight minutes to take a 15-7 advantage at the midway point of the first half. The Rangers would then miss four of their next five shot attempts, allowing Northeast to take over the lead, 20-17, thanks to a 13-2 scoring run.
Cooper's layup at the 5:50 mark of the first half allowed Northwest to briefly regain a one-point lead, but the Tigers spent the rest of the first half outscoring the Rangers 12-5, punctuated by a Zeke Cook layup at the buzzer that sent the home team to the locker room in a 32-26 deficit.
Northeast would never trail in the second half, despite multiple runs from the Rangers. Northwest pulled within three points or less on numerous occasions over the final 20 minutes, the most notable one occurring on a 13-2 run that culminated in a 56-56 tie with 6:02 left to go.
Despite the comeback attempts, the Rangers were never able to wrestle away the lead, as Northeast stayed one step ahead the rest of the way, eventually swelling the lead back to double digits on a series of made free throws with less than a minute left.
As mentioned, offense wasn't a strong suit for either team during the contest as Northeast came away with 35 percent shooting, just ahead of a 32 percent shooting night for the Rangers. The Tigers shot 35 percent from three-point land, while Northwest was limited to 3-of-18 (17%).
Both teams also struggled from the free throw line, shooting around 50 percent for most of the contest. However, the barrage of free throws for both teams late in the second half helped improve the overall percentages, with Northeast shooting 64 percent and Northwest finishing at 63 percent.
Northwest was out-rebounded 57-51, but the Rangers did outscore the Tigers 36-18 in the paint. The difference-maker for Northeast was the performance of the Tigers' bench, which outscored Northwest 30-10 in that category.
Cooper's 26 points marked his fourth 20-point game of the season and his 12th game in double figures.
Ethan Pickett also totaled 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Rangers, while
Jaylon Sanders added nine points and five boards.
In his first start since December 9,
T.J. Hannah returned to the lineup to chip in nine rebounds, while reigning MACCC Player of the Week
Isaiah Gaines was held to just five points and four rebounds in limited action.
For Northeast, the Tigers were paced by three players in double figures, led by an 18-point evening from Ken Lewis. Cook finished with 15 points and 20 boards, while Blackmon added 13 points. Hobert Grayson also earned nine points and six rebounds off the bench.
Northwest will face another stiff test next Tuesday at Pearl River. The Wildcats are 10-2 on the season and 5-0 in conference play, following a one-point victory against Mississippi Gulf Coast. Although the two teams haven't faced each other much over the years, Northwest does hold a 13-9 all-time series lead against the Wildcats, despite Pearl River ending the Rangers' playoff run last season.
Tipoff from Poplarville is scheduled for 6 P.M. and can be seen onÂ
prccmedia.com/watchlive.
