SCOOBA - Though Monday's contest at East Mississippi was wire-to-wire the entire way, the Lady Lions stayed one step ahead of Northwest throughout the second half, handing the Lady Rangers a 54-49 loss.

For Northwest, it was the first loss of the season, as the Lady Rangers dropped to 7-1 overall. Meanwhile, the win helped East Mississippi improve to 2-7 on the season.

Sophomore Zaria Glover drained a pair of three-pointers to lift Northwest to an early 12-3 advantage, but the Lady Lions rallied back to tie the game at 14-4 by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Rangers managed to outscore EMCC in the second period, but only led by a slim 28-25 margin at halftime.

The biggest difference of the evening came in the third quarter, where East Mississippi seemed to have the edge in momentum coming out of the locker room. The Lady Rangers were outscored 15-9 over the span of the quarter, which helped the Lady Lions to take a 40-37 advantage entering the final 10 minutes of play.

Although Northwest tried to reclaim the lead, EMCC seemed to have an answer for every made shot from the Lady Rangers. The game was tight over the final minute of regulation, but the Lady Lions gained some breathing room with made free throws down the stretch, spoiling the undefeated record for Northwest.

Despite the early three-pointers from Glover, Northwest made just one more shot from beyond the arc for the rest of the evening, finishing 3-for-20 (15%) from outside. In total, the Lady Rangers shot 28 percent from the floor and 63 percent from the charity stripe.

Glover was the only Northwest player to reach double figures, earning 11 points with three rebounds and three steals. Angela Middleton added eight points and four rebounds, while Kae'la Mitchell provided seven points, four rebounds and three assists off the bench.

Additionally, the block party continued for Mikayla Abram, as the freshman from Memphis collected three of the Lady Rangers' six swats on the evening. Currently, Abram leads the NJCAA with 28 blocks, while also ranking second in average blocks per game (3.5).

Nakeria Scales and Ramya King led East Mississippi with 16 and 12 points, respectively, with Scales also adding 10 rebounds for a double-double. The Lady Lions shot 35 percent from the floor and 86 percent from the free throw line.

Northwest will host Blue Mountain Christian JV on Thursday, November 30 at 5:30 P.M. The game will be the last one played for the Lady Rangers during the 2023 calendar year, with action resuming on January 6 at Dyersburg State.

Thursday's game can be seen on Ranger TV and Action News 5 Plus.  Read Full Article