| EMCC basketball teams claim home sweep over Mississippi Delta; No. 14 Lions win 15th straight |
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SCOOBA – Heading down the home stretch of the regular season, the East Mississippi Community College basketball teams earned an MACJC North Division sweep over visiting Mississippi Delta CC Thursday night at EMCC’s Keyes T. Currie Coliseum. Following the Lady Lions’ 61-52 victory over the Delta women, the 14th-ranked EMCC Lions cruised to their 15th consecutive win with an 81-54 triumph over the Trojans in the nightcap.
After a first half that featured nine lead changes and five ties, head coach Sharon Thompson’s EMCC Lady Lions maintained their advantage for most of the opening 10 minutes of the second stanza. When MDCC inched ahead 44-42 at the 8:06 mark, sophomore guard Chadisty Hickman ignited a 7-0 EMCC run with back-to-back isolation baskets in the lane to give the Lady Lions a 49-44 lead with five minutes left in the contest. The EMCC women sealed the nine-point victory by hitting 7-of-8 free throws over the final minute of play to improve to 7-14 overall and 4-6 within the division. Alvida Clemons and Hickman once again led the Lady Lions with 15 and 13 points, respectively, including a combined 21 second-half points between them. Freshman forward Raishawnda Brantley, of Eupora, collected her first collegiate double-double with a season-high 12 points in addition to matching her season-best total with 11 rebounds. Falling to 8-12 overall and 3-7 in division play, the Lady Trojans were paced by Myiesha Stewart and Jocelyn Jordan with 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the visitors. In the nightcap, head coach Mark White’s No. 14 EMCC Lions scored the first nine points of the contest and held the Trojans to without a field goal for the first eight minutes. In leading from the opening tip to the final buzzer, the three-time MACJC North Division champions increased their 30-17 halftime margin to 20 points midway through the second stanza en route to the convincing 27-point victory. East Mississippi’s current 15-game winning streak, dating back to Nov. 22, is presently the second-longest win string in NJCAA Division I men’s basketball behind top-ranked and undefeated (25-0) South Plains College (Texas). Now 18-2 overall and a perfect 10-0 within the MACJC’s North Division, the EMCC Lions were powered by Deon Bedford’s career-high 21 points off the bench. The sophomore swingman, by way of West Oktibbeha High School, was 8-of-12 from the field along with being credited with seven rebounds, three steals and a pair of blocked shots. Sophomore forward Curtis Hall, of West Point, notched his first collegiate double-double with career-high totals of 15 points and 13 rebounds, including eight offensive boards. Sophomore playmaker D.J. Evans, of Brandon, added 13 points and five assists for the winners. The visiting Trojans, now 7-13 overall and 1-9 within the division, received a team-high 15 points from LaQuavius Cotton. As the JucoWeekly.org MACJC Basketball Game of the Week, game highlights and post-game interviews from both EMCC-MDCC contests will be available online at www.jucoweekly.org. The East Mississippi basketball teams will close out the home portion of their 2011-12 basketball slate by playing host to division rival Itawamba Community College Monday night on the Scooba campus. Along with featuring Sophomore Night activities and encouraging fans to wear black to the games, the first 500 fans in attendance for Monday’s EMCC ‘blackout’ hoops doubleheader will receive free t-shirts compliments of Renasant Bank. A 5:30 p.m. women’s contest will be followed by the 7:30 p.m. men’s game at EMCC’s Currie Coliseum. |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 16 February 2012 ) |
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