| EMCC caps first half of division hoops slate with doubleheader road sweep over Coahoma |
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CLARKSDALE – East Mississippi Community College successfully closed out the first half of the MACJC North Division basketball slate with a doubleheader road sweep over Coahoma Monday evening at the Pinnacle. The EMCC Lions remained unbeaten in league play with an 88-85 victory over the Tigers, while the Lady Lions moved into second place within the division with a 68-59 win over the Coahoma women.
In Monday’s opener, head coach Sharon Thompson’s Lady Lions overcame a 31-28 halftime deficit to pull away for the nine-point win. Now 9-7 overall on the year, the victory, coupled with Itawamba’s Monday win over Holmes, moved EMCC to 4-2 in league play and into second place in the division standings behind the front-running and unbeaten (5-0) ICC Lady Indians. Coming off her collegiate-first double-double this past Saturday at Northeast Mississippi, EMCC sophomore Kierra Jones of Starkville totaled 15 points and nine rebounds to pace the visitors. Freshman guard Kiara Quinones-Noa (Carolina, Puerto Rico) also tossed in 15 points, while fellow freshman Chadisty Hickman of Kemper County recorded her third double-double of the season with 10 points and a game-most 10 boards for the winners. Falling to 4-10 overall and 0-5 in division play, Coahoma received a game-high 25 points, including seven made 3-pointers, by Kandi Granger. Tia Nunnally followed with 10 points for the Lady Tigers. In the nightcap, head coach Mark White’s Lions had to rally from a 14-point deficit (60-46) in the second half to pull out the narrow road victory. Winners of five straight games and now ranked 15th nationally in this week’s NJCAA poll, the reigning NJCAA Region 23 and MACJC North Division champions improved to 15-2 overall and remain unbeaten against league foes at 6-0 heading into the second half of division competition. Individually, six of the seven Lion players who scored on the night reached double figures. Sophomore guard Deonte Alexander (Nashville, Tenn.) led the way with 18 points, while freshman playmaker D.J. Evans of Brandon followed close behind with 17 points. The backcourt tandem collectively scored 29 of their combined 35 points following intermission. Freshman Tradarrius McPhearson of Edwards and Meridian’s Donovan Walker added a dozen points apiece to the winning road effort. The Coahoma men, falling to 6-8 overall and 2-3 within league play, also had balanced scoring on the night. Led by Tony Payne’s game-high 22 points, Patrick Brown and Turio Tumblin also contributed 16 and 14 points, respectively, for the home-standing Tigers. Set to play their fourth hoops twinbill in a week’s span, the East Mississippi basketball teams conclude their week-long stretch of road outings by traveling to Goodman to take on the Bulldogs of Holmes Community College Thursday night. |
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| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 January 2011 ) |
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