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On the heels of Monday’s home sweep of Mississippi Delta, the EMCC basketball teams will conclude a week-long homestand by entertaining Itawamba Thursday evening on the Scooba campus. Tip-off times are set for 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at EMCC’s Keyes T. Currie Coliseum.
In Monday’s opening contest, head coach Sharon Thompson’s EMCC Lady Lions scored the first nine points of the game en route to establishing a 34-22 halftime advantage. The margin stayed at double figures throughout the second stanza, though the Lady Trojans did manage to cut the deficit to 11 points on two occasions early in the second half.
After Delta trimmed the margin to 41-30 four minutes into the half, EMCC sophomore guard Natalie Tate countered with her second of three second-half 3-pointers to reclaim the momentum for the home team. A product of Columbus High School, Tate led all game scorers with a season-high 18 points. Freshman guard Chadisty Hickman followed with 13 points, while sophomore forward Jamie Gunter of Columbus added 10 points in her EMCC debut after undergoing preseason knee surgery for a torn ACL.
In snapping their three-game losing skid, the Lady Lions improved to 7-6 overall and 2-1 in MACJC North Division play.
Falling to 2-9 overall and 1-2 within the division, the Mississippi Delta women were led by Calmette Greyer’s 17 points.
In Monday’s nightcap, head coach Mark White’s East Mississippi Lions bolted to an 11-2 lead four minutes into the men’s contest. In limiting the Trojans to 21-percent shooting through the opening 20 minutes of play, EMCC maintained a 37-21 halftime advantage.
After EMCC stretched the margin to 21 points (55-34) on back-to-back 3-pointers by Tradarrius McPhearson and Deonte Alexander, Delta’s Anthony Evans scored eight unanswered points to trim the deficit to 55-42 by the 10:55 mark of the closing period. With the Trojans shooting an improved 55 percent following intermission, the visitors managed to cut the margin to single digits on an Evans trey with less than a minute left to play to account for the final outcome.
Improving to a division-best 3-0 and 12-2 overall on the year, the Lions received 16 points apiece from Alexander and fellow sophomore Donovan Walker of Meridian. Saddled with a pair of early first-half fouls, freshman point guard D.J. Evans of Brandon added 10 second-half points for the winners.
Now 7-4 overall and 1-2 in division play, the visiting Trojans were led by Evans and Jamar Harris with 16 points apiece.
The East Mississippi basketball teams conclude their week-long homestand by playing host to MACJC North Division rival Itawamba Thursday evening on the Scooba campus. A 5:30 p.m. women’s game will be followed by a 7:30 p.m. men’s contest at EMCC’s Currie Coliseum.