SENATOBIA - Monday evening's conference showdown between Northwest and Itawamba displayed a tale of two teams.

In the first half, the Rangers were locked in, playing the best 20 minutes of basketball all season. Northwest led 45-42 at the break, but a dismal second half saw the visiting Indians take control, as NWCC dropped a 95-74 loss.

Itawamba (21-4, 8-2 MACCC) outscored the Rangers by a 53-29 margin in the second half, and two Indians finished the night with over 20 points apiece. One of the more glaring stats saw ICC outscore Northwest in the paint, 48-26.

Northwest shot 56 percent in the first half, but finished just 10-for-29 from the floor in the second half. The Rangers also went from an 86 percent free throw average in the first half to a 44 percent stat line over the final 20 minutes.

Though Itawamba led by nine at a couple different points of the first half, Northwest kept the deficit under double digits over the first 20 minutes of action. Trailing 30-21 with 7:59 left, the Rangers were sparked by a Ja'Quise Richmond three-pointer and went on a 9-1 run, closing the gap to 31-30 with 5:58 remaining before halftime.

Itawamba managed to stretch the gap back to six points, but a three-pointer from Shavurdacour Nicholas brought Northwest back within three. Nicholas followed with a layup and a free throw over the next minute, keeping the Rangers within two, 38-36.

Down by one with three minutes left in the first half, a steal by Grant Hutton set up a fast break dunk by Richmond, giving Northwest the lead. The Rangers would close out the half with a jumper from Hutton and a dunk from Tyler Spears, pushing the score to 45-42.

Although Northwest initially picked up where it left off to start the second half, Itawamba soon embarked on a 12-2 run and regained a 56-50 lead. Back-to-back three-pointers from Spears and Caleb Hunt allowed the Rangers to tie the game and a made free throw from Spears even granted NWCC a brief one-point lead.

Both teams continued to go back and forth over the next few minutes, but the Indians used a 15-2 run over a six-minute span to turn a three-point lead into an 85-69 advantage. In all, Northwest scored just seven points over the final nine minutes of regulation, as Itawamba eventually pulled ahead by 21 points in the final minute.

Four players reached double figures for the Rangers, led by 18 points from Nicholas, with 16 of those coming in the first half. Richmond came off the bench to provide 17 points and a team-high five rebounds, while Spears netted 12 points of his own.

Tyler Shephard rounded out the Northwest players in double digits, scoring 10 points to go with a pair of assists and two steals.

For the Indians, Kam Clark and A.J. Dent accounted for 23 points each, with Dent also collecting eight rebounds. Marcel Bridges added 15 points and Damarion Winston contributed 10 points as well.

With the loss, the Rangers fall to 6-16 overall and 1-10 in the MACCC. The current 10-game losing streak is the longest for Northwest since the 1992-93 season. 

Northwest will aim to snap the skid with a visit to Meridian on Thursday, February 20. The Eagles (8-17, 1-9 MACCC) are one spot ahead of the Rangers at 14th in the latest conference standings.

Tipoff for Thursday's contest is set for 7:30 P.M. Tickets are available here and live broadcast coverage can be found at mcceagles.live. Read Full Article