| EMCC Lions top rival East Central 82-72 in Decatur; Lady Lions downed 49-41 by ECCC |
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DECATUR – Sophomore Jarekious Bradley, the NJCAA’s leading scorer, matched his season’s average of 28 points to help lead the Lions of East Mississippi Community College to an 82-72 road victory over East Central Community College Thursday evening at the Brackeen-Wood Physical Education Building. In the women’s contest, the Lady Warriors prevailed 49-41 over the visiting EMCC women.
Head coach Mark White’s EMCC Lions grabbed the early advantage over the winless Warriors. A 13-2 run by the visitors increased a narrow 20-17 lead to 14 points (33-19) late in the opening half. The Lions stretched the margin to 18 points (43-25) before resting on a 43-28 halftime cushion. East Mississippi maintained its double-digit lead for the early portion of the second half until nine unanswered points by the Warriors trimmed a 16-point deficit to seven points (67-60) with less than six minutes remaining. East Central shaved the margin to six points on a couple of occasions late in the contest, but Bradley tallied eight of his 17 second-half points down the stretch to nail down the victory. With the 10-point triumph, the EMCC Lions improved to 5-1 overall on the season and claimed their 10th consecutive series win over East Central dating back to the 2008-09 campaign. The Lions will now look to avenge their lone loss of the current season by traveling to Baton Rouge Community College for a Monday night (Dec. 10) rematch with the Bears. BRCC previously earned a 79-76 overtime road win over EMCC back on Nov. 12 in Scooba. Sophomore Micah Walker (Jonesboro, Ark.) along with freshmen Jacolby Mobley, of Starkville, and Mack Foster, a West Bolivar High School product, each added a dozen points apiece for the winners. Falling to 0-10 on the year, East Central’s Hakeem Wesley topped all scorers with 30 points. The sophomore from Newton County was the lone Warrior player to reach twin digits in the scoring column. In the women’s game, seven lead changes marked a sluggish opening half of play by both teams. The visiting Lady Lions held an 18-17 halftime edge and went ahead by four points early in the second half. The Lady Warriors responded by putting together a pair of 10-0 runs later in the half to establish control of the contest. Three straight baskets by EMCC freshman Nockeyia Qualls enabled the visitors to rally from a 43-31 deficit. Two free throws by fellow frosh Takera Mitchell, of Wayne County, capped an 8-0 spurt by the Lady Lions that sliced the margin to just four points (43-39) with 2:26 left in regulation. That’s when East Central sophomore guard Jaianah Matthew took charge and finished off her 21-point effort by hitting a clutch 3-pointer and converting 3-of-4 free throws over the final two minutes to secure the Lady Warriors’ eight-point home triumph. Matching her season high of 10 points, Qualls, a Forest High School product, was the lone Lady Lion player in double figures. Mitchell, EMCC’s leading scorer on the season, was limited to a season-low four points on the night. The Lady Warriors, now 4-6 on the season, also received 10 points from Tyneisa Mickens. Falling to 1-9 on the season with their eighth straight defeat, head coach Sharon Thompson’s EMCC Lady Lions take a month-long hiatus from hardwood competition for the Christmas holidays before returning to action on Jan. 8 by welcoming the same East Central squad to the Scooba campus. |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 07 December 2012 ) |
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