SUMMIT - Northwest Mississippi Community College women's basketball team (15-8, 6-3) got back to their winning ways with a comprehensive 59-45 victory over Southwest Mississippi Community College (7-16, 3-7).  

After a back-and-forth first quarter, the Rangers were trailing the Bears by a score of 13-17. However, in the second quarter, NWCC's offense exploded, and their defense was like a brick wall. This led to Northwest going on a 17-2 run in the second quarter.  

The offensive production continued into the third quarter when the Rangers were able to outscore the Bears 17-8.  

Sophomore Alorian Story got injured early in the fourth quarter and did not play the rest of the game. Story ended the game with 12 points and seven rebounds.  

Playing without Story, the fourth quarter was simply a game of runs. The first big run of the quarter was a 13-0 run by Southwest. This allowed Southwest to cut the lead down to six points. However, the Bears did not score another point over the last three minutes of the game. This allowed the Rangers to go on an 8-0 run to finish the game. 

A key factor in the Northwest win was production off of the bench. Niakeela Powell and Takera Bland contributed extremely valuable minutes off of the bench. Powell ended the night with a career-best nine points and four rebounds. Shining defensively, Bland ended the night with five points, three blocks, and a season-best 11 rebounds.  

This win kicks off the most challenging stretch of the season that will see the Rangers play four games in a week with three of those being on the road. During this stretch, NWCC will play Hinds at home, travel to Wesson to play Copiah-Lincoln, and travel to Perkinston to play a team that is receiving votes in the national poll in Mississippi Gulf Coast.  

Northwest (15-8, 6-3) will take on Hinds Community College (5-17, 2-8) at home in Howard Coliseum at 5:30 p.m. this Thursday, February 19. You can stream the game starting at 5:20 pm on Ranger TV. 

To stay up to date on the NWCC women's basketball team, follow the Ranger social media accounts or go to nwccrangers.com.