SCOOBA - Sophomore duo
Joseph Cooper and
Jaylon Sanders combined for 46 points in Thursday's 93-75 loss at East Mississippi.
Cooper was responsible for 30 points, a new career-high for the Olive Branch native. The guard made nine of his 11 free throw attempts and was 10-for-21 from the floor.
Northwest led briefly in the early stages of the contest, but the Rangers trailed East Mississippi the rest of the way. Despite being on the wrong end of the score, Northwest kept things relatively close, trailing by less than 10 for most of the first half. Ultimately, the Rangers went into the halftime break down by six, 40-34.
As the second half progressed, the Lions began to pull further and further away. EMCC stretched its lead to 56-43 and later pushed Northwest into a 20-point deficit, 73-53, with 10 minutes left in regulation.
Though Northwest was able to pull back within 13 points late in the half, the Lions remained ahead by double figures down the stretch, eliminating any threat of a comeback.
Northwest shot 47 percent from the floor and 78 percent from the free throw line. On the flip side, East Mississippi shot 49 percent and were 20-of-25 from the charity stripe.
In addition to his career-high scoring total, Cooper also tallied six rebounds, five assists and a steal. Additionally, Sanders totaled 16 points for his fourth straight game in double figures, his eighth double-digit game of the season and his 20th career game with 10 or more points.
Jordan Johnson netted six points in his Northwest debut, while
Devin Moore provided six points and five rebounds off the bench.
EMCC's Blake Butler once again proved to be a thorn in the Rangers' side, collecting 31 points to lead all scorers. Two other Lions finished in double figures, led by a career-high 18-point effort from D.J. Avery and a 10-point boost off the bench from Ashten Michael. Additionally, Jacob Reese led East Mississippi with 12 rebounds.
With the loss, Northwest dropped to 2-8 on the season and 0-1 in the MACCC, while East Mississippi jumped to 10-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play. The Rangers will aim to snap a three-game losing skid on Monday, January 9 against Holmes, the first home game for Northwest since November 28.
Tipoff against Holmes is slated for 6 P.M. at Howard Coliseum, with live coverage available on Ranger TV (
nwccrangers.com/watch) and Action News 5 Plus.
