DECATUR - A pair of strong scoring efforts from Isaiah Gaines and Ethan Pickett helped spark a 38-point second half output for Northwest, as the Rangers downed East Central for a 69-55 road win on Monday evening.

Gaines finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds, followed by 18 points and 10 boards from Pickett, helping the Rangers to their second consecutive victory. Northwest improved to 12-4 on the season and 5-3 in conference play, while East Central fell to 4-9 overall and 2-5 against MACCC competition.

Northwest started with the hot hand and made the most of some trips to the charity stripe early in the game, taking a six-point lead just four minutes into the contest. East Central answered back with a run of its own and the first half went back-and-forth the rest of the way, with the Warriors earning a slight 32-31 advantage at halftime.

However, the Warriors started sluggish in the second half and the Rangers took full advantage, building a 13-2 run to pull away. Aside from East Central pulling within eight a couple times midway through the second half, Northwest used another big scoring run to lead by double digits for the remainder of the contest.

Northwest bounced back from a 33 percent shooting total in the first half, earning a solid 52 percent from the floor in the second half and finishing the game with a 42 percent shooting average. The Rangers were cold from three-point range in the first half (1-of-9; 11%), but shot 36 percent in the second half.

In addition to Gaines and Pickett's performances, Kavonte Tunstall also added 10 rebounds, while Joseph Cooper tallied seven boards with four points. Northwest outscored East Central 34-22 in the paint and 17-9 in bench points, with seven points from James Richards III leading the reserves.

East Central finished the game shooting 30 percent, led by 17 points from Demajion Topps. Christopher Keys added 15 points on nine rebounds, while David Berry chipped in nine points and five boards.

Northwest returns to the friendly confines of Howard Coliseum on Thursday, January 27 to take on Hinds. The Rangers lead the all-time series against the Bulldogs, 33-15, with the last meeting coming in the 2020 MACJC Tournament. In that meeting, Hinds got the best of Northwest, 81-55.

Tipoff for Thursday's contest is slated for 6 P.M., with tickets available at nwccrangers.com/tickets. Broadcast coverage will also be carried online at Ranger TV (nwccrangers.com/watch) and Facebook Live. Read Full Article