Senatobia, Miss. — Northwest Mississippi Community College’s men’s basketball team improved to 12-4 overall with a 107-100 win over East Mississippi in the MACCC opener Monday at Howard Coliseum.
East Mississippi (10-7, 0-1) took an early lead, pushing ahead 13-5 at one point. However, Ladarius Brown hit a three-pointer, and Grant Hutton followed with a tip-in, sparking a 12-0 run that put Northwest ahead 17-13 with 12:30 remaining in the first half.
The game remained close, with both teams trading bursts of offense. Northwest faced foul trouble, with Dakota Morris and Brown each committing three fouls before halftime. The Rangers led 44-42 at the break.
Coming out of halftime, Northwest quickly extended its lead with a 6-0 run, but East Mississippi responded, trimming the deficit to 54-52. Morris then hit a three and a fast-break layup from Zahir Gutierrez to restore a seven-point advantage. Morris continued to lead the charge, pushing the lead to double digits, including a crucial and-one drive to make it 65-54 with 15 minutes left.
The Rangers’ lead grew as much as 14 points, but East Mississippi mounted a comeback, scoring 14 straight points over two and a half minutes to close the gap. Duffy’s free throw with three minutes remaining marked the 11th time this season Northwest scored 100 or more points, tying the second most in program history, last achieved in the 2004-2005 season.
Northwest held on to win, with the final score of 107-100. Morris led the team with 24 points and four rebounds, shooting perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Gutierrez added 19 points and was perfect from the free throw line, going 6-for-6. Duffy posted a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Brown scored 15 points, including five three-pointers.
The Rangers limited East Mississippi to four three-pointers and under 30% shooting from beyond the arc. They also dominated the rebounding battle 51-41 and committed only 14 turnovers in the game. Northwest will travel Thursday to face Holmes Community College in a rematch scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The teams last met Dec. 4, with Holmes winning 104-94.
More information is available at nwccrangers.com, and updates can be followed on social media throughout the season.
