SENATOBIA - In a game that turned out to be a back-and-forth three-point shooting contest, Northwest got a career-high 27 points from
Tyler Shephard and an additional 20 points from
Ja'Quise Richmond, as the Rangers chalked up an 89-65 victory against East Mississippi on Thursday afternoon.
Northwest ended the game the same way it started - raining down three point shots. Four of the first five baskets by the Rangers came from beyond the arc, with
Keanu Patrick making the first two, followed by one apiece from Shephard and
Colain Brown.
Northwest led 11-0 to start the contest, with East Mississippi finally picking up its first basket on a jumper from Jonathan Baker at the 15:41 mark of the first half. The Rangers led by as many as 16 points with 12:44 remaining in the half, as a layup from
Shavurdacour Nicholas made it a 22-6 advantage.
However, the rest of the first half favored the Lions, as Northwest began to struggle from outside the arc. EMCC trailed 24-11 midway through the half, eventually closing the gap to 26-25 with 3:57 remaining until halftime.
Keymarius Lewis' three-pointer helped the Lions gain a 28-26 lead with 1:34 left, only for Shephard to respond with a layup for Northwest. With six seconds left in the half, Josh Brown sank a three-point basket to give East Mississippi a 31-28 halftime advantage.
Although the visiting team entered the break with the momentum, the Rangers wasted no time taking back the tempo in the second half. With EMCC inbounding the ball to open the half, Shephard promptly stole the ball away and took it in for a layup. Brown followed on the next possession with a successful three-pointer, pushing Northwest to a 33-31 lead.
Brown responded quickly with a three-pointer, only for Brown to counter with a three of his own, giving the Rangers the lead on a permanent basis. Over the next three minutes, Northwest stretched its lead to 13 points, capping off a sizable run with a three-pointer from Patrick.
East Mississippi trimmed the deficit back to nine twice over the next couple minutes, but Northwest pulled back ahead by 15 on a three-pointer from Shephard with 9:31 left. From there, the game descended into a three-point shooting extravaganza, although the Rangers stayed ahead by double figures.
Leading 78-62 with less than four minutes to go, back-to-back jumpers from Patrick and Richmond made it a 20-point advantage. After a three-pointer from Shephard gave Northwest a 24-point lead, the Rangers earned their largest lead of the game on a fastbreak layup from Richmond with 46 seconds left.
Northwest shot 43 percent from the floor and made 15 three-pointers, outscoring East Mississippi 22-12 in the paint. The Rangers also finished with a 14-0 margin in fastbreak points and a 19-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
Four Northwest players reached double figures, including Shephard and Richmond. Shephard also collected a double-double, earning a team-best 11 rebounds. Patrick had a near double-double, ending the game with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Brown also finished with 14 points.
Additionally, Nicholas also came close to a double-double of his own, scoring nine points with 10 assists.
Brown led East Mississippi with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Lewis provided a 16-point effort off the bench. Baker also finished with a double-double, scoring 14 points with 10 assists.
Northwest improved to 5-6 overall, snapping a six-game losing skid to East Mississippi dating back to December 2, 2021. The Lions dropped to 6-9 on the season.
Next up for the Rangers is the conference opener against Copiah-Lincoln, scheduled for a 7:30 tipoff on Monday, January 13.
