The Northwest Mississippi Community College men’s basketball team secured a home game in the MACCC postseason with a 116-102 win over Mississippi Delta on Tuesday night. The victory gave the Rangers their first home playoff appearance since hosting the MACJC Tournament in the 2017-18 season, according to school officials.
First-year head coach John Redman praised his team’s effort despite adversity this season. “This year we had a little adversity with losing Dakota and some other guys, but we just found a way with everyone stepping up,” he said. “They play really, really hard, they compete and don’t care what the score is or who we’re playing. That’s a testament to the guys we have in our program.”
The game saw Northwest trail early, with Mississippi Delta leading 13-11 before an 11-0 run sparked by three consecutive three-pointers from Ladarius Brown. Brown finished with 20 points, including 11 in the first half. The Rangers’ hot shooting helped them build a 60-49 halftime lead, making their first five three-pointers of the game.
In the second half, Northwest responded to a rally from the Trojans with a strong start at the foul line, going 9-for-10 in the first four minutes and expanding their lead to 75-61. Mississippi Delta trimmed the deficit to 77-72, but Redman called a timeout, and the Rangers responded with a 16-1 run to pull away. They eventually led by as many as 24 points, finishing with a 116-102 victory.
Northwest will host Southern University – Shreveport on Thursday at Howard Coliseum in the opening round of the Region 23 tournament. The winner advances to face top seed Itawamba Community College on Saturday. Itawamba secured the No. 1 seed after winning the MACCC regular season, officials said.
Leading scorers included Chancellor Terry with 21 points off the bench, Brown with 20, and Houston Cunningham, also with 20, who was perfect from the free-throw line. Demetrius Duffy contributed a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The team shot 13-for-34 beyond the arc and 25-for-30 from the foul line, an 83% success rate. Tip-off for Thursday’s game is set for 6 p.m., with updates available on nwccrangers.com and the school’s social media channels.
