SENATOBIA - For the first time during LaTaryl Williams' coaching tenure and the first time since January 8, 2019, Northwest reached the century mark in Thursday's victory against Blue Mountain Christian University JV.

Leading 51-25 at halftime, the Lady Rangers outscored BMCU JV 50-24 over the span of the second half, earning the 101-49 win against the Lady Toppers. Coincidentally, BMCU JV was also the opponent the last time Northwest scored 100 or more points, as the Lady Rangers won that matchup by a 103-37 margin.

Every player scored for Northwest in the victory and a whopping seven players reached double figures, led by a 20-point, nine-rebound effort from Jacia Hayes. 

Northwest never trailed in the game, opening the game on a 12-0 run. The Lady Rangers led by double digits the rest of the way and took its largest first quarter lead of 23 points on an Anaria Lee layup, with 1:21 remaining.

With a comfortable 30-11 lead entering the second quarter, Northwest continued to gain separation, eventually pushing the lead to 30 points with three minutes to go before halftime. A double technical foul late in the quarter was the only thing that brought the Lady Toppers under 30 points, as Yazmine Norphlet hit all four of her free throws with 20 seconds left.

Northwest shot 43 percent from the floor in the first half and the Lady Rangers were 80 percent from the charity stripe. Hayes provided half of her 20 points in the first half, followed by eight points apiece from Zaria Glover, Marian Jenkins and Kae'la Mitchell.

As for BMCU JV, the Lady Toppers finished the first half shooting just 27 percent and 0-for-6 from beyond the arc. Secora Tate had six points to lead BMCU JV in the first half.

In the second half, Northwest continued to run away with the game, swelling the lead above 40 points over the final two minutes of the third quarter. A layup from Merciana Sandifer put the Lady Rangers up 73-33 with 2:12 left in the period and a jumper from Hayes made it a 42-point margin.

A three-pointer by McKenzie Amos closed out the third quarter and a three-point shot from Lee ended the scoring with 53 seconds left in the game.

In addition to Hayes' near double-double, Mariah Reed-Jones also provided 12 points and five rebounds, while Glover posted 11 points, six assists and six steals. Lily Whitley added 11 points and six rebounds off the bench, while Jenkins, Mitchell and Mikayla Abram scored 10 points each.

Lee also nearly finished in double figures, scoring nine points. Mitchell added six rebounds to go along with her scoring total, as Jenkins contributed five rebounds. For her part, Abram also collected three blocks to bring her season total to 31. The Memphis native continues to lead the NJCAA Division I ranks in total blocks.

Amos finished as the Lady Rangers' leading rebounder, posting 11 boards with eight assists. Sandifer also pitched in nine rebounds as well, bringing the total rebound margin to 67-31 in favor of Northwest.

Northwest shot 46 percent for the evening, compared to just 28 percent from the Lady Toppers. The Lady Rangers also outmatched BMCU JV in the paint, 70-6, while posting a 22-0 margin in fastbreak points.

Additionally, the Lady Rangers outscored the Lady Toppers in bench points (55-13), points off turnovers (39-6) and second chance points (31-4).

Norphlet led BMCU JV with 10 points and three assists, while Tate and Marley Britt finished with nine and eight points, respectively. Madison Garrett led the Lady Toppers with four rebounds.

With the win, Northwest moved to 8-1 on the season. The Lady Rangers will take an extended break over the holidays, before resuming play on Saturday, January 6 at Dyersburg State. The two teams faced off earlier this year in Senatobia, with Northwest taking a 59-49 win on November 6.

Northwest will return to the Howard Coliseum floor on Thursday, Jan. 11, as the Lady Rangers host Copiah-Lincoln in the non-conference finale. Tipoff for that contest is slated for 5:30 P.M. Read Full Article