SENATOBIA - After being held to 27 first half points, Northwest turned things up a few notches and scored nearly 60 second half points in an 85-78 triumph on Sophomore Night against Southwest Mississippi.

Northwest improved to 15-6 on the season with its second consecutive victory, while also running its conference record to 8-5. The visiting Bears dropped to 15-8 overall and 8-6 in conference play.

Both teams got off to a sluggish offensive start with the first basket not coming until the 16:32 mark on a layup from Zae Blake. After a 5-5 tie, Southwest Mississippi used a 10-2 run to extend its lead to eight, 15-7.

A jumper from James Richards III allowed the Rangers to pull back within four midway through the first half, but the Bears went up by double figures on a Jamil Bowles three-pointer at the 6:47 mark and led by as many as 13 points with under five minutes to go.

Back-to-back three-pointers from Ethan Pickett and Jaylon Sanders helped Northwest pull within single digits and the Rangers managed to close the gap to 29-27 with 1:13 left. However, Southwest Mississippi closed the first half on a 5-0 run to take a 34-27 advantage into the locker room.

Fortunes changed for Northwest to start the second half, as Southwest Mississippi was held scoreless for the first six minutes. In that span, the Rangers broke off a 14-0 run to go ahead 41-34, a lead that later swelled to double figures on a fastbreak layup from Pickett.

Northwest led by double figures for a while after that, extending the lead to as many as 18 on a two-handed jam from Isaiah Gaines at the 8:20 mark. However, the Bears soon roared back, pulling within 10 on a Trent Coleman three-pointer at the 5:06 mark and coming as close as three points with 1:42 remaining.

Despite the rally from the Bears, Northwest would never surrender the lead, answering the big three with back-to-back layups by Isaiah Gaines and a series of successful free throws down the stretch to claim the seven-point victory.

Northwest shot 59 percent from the floor in the second half and finished the game shooting 46 percent. Southwest Mississippi shot 43 percent, but the Bears were also 44 percent from three-point range.

Northwest got 42 points off the bench, led by 19 from Sanders, 11 from Richards and 10 from Zandon Haralson. The Rangers also outscored Southwest Mississippi 23-6 in points off turnovers, but were edged 44-34 in total rebounds.

Joseph Cooper led the Rangers with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Jacquez Fountain posted the same stat line for the Bears. Zach Shugars also helped Southwest Mississippi with 17 points, followed by 12 from Blake and 11 from Demarcus Ellzey.

Northwest now sits in a tie for fifth with Mississippi Gulf Coast as the Rangers enter their regular season finale with Copiah-Lincoln. The Wolves and Rangers will face each other Thursday, February 17 at 6 P.M. in Wesson.