With 9:35 left in the first half, Northwest had an 18-13 lead on Northeast, but the Tigers flipped the script with a 20-2 run in the Rangers' 88-68 loss on Thursday evening.
Northwest was never able to recover from the big run, falling behind by double figures at halftime and trailing by as many as 28 late in the second half. The loss marked the fifth straight for the Rangers, falling to 6-11 overall and 1-5 in the MACCC. Northeast improved to 20-2 on the season and 4-2 in conference play.
Shavurdacour Nicholas opened the game with a layup and Northwest took a 6-1 lead less than three minutes into the contest. That would prove to be the Rangers' largest lead of the night, as Northeast pulled within a point less than two minutes later.
Tyler Byrd's layup sparked the drastic run for the Tigers at the 9:16 mark of the first half, and only a pair of free throws kept Northwest from going scoreless on the momentum shift. Colain Brown's dunk with 2:33 left in the half was the Rangers' first field goal in a seven-minute span, trimming the new deficit to nine points. However, Northeast responded quickly on the other end of the floor and took a 42-28 lead into halftime.
Less than three minutes into the second half, the Tigers took their first 20-point advantage of the evening, and Northwest never came closer than 17 points the rest of the contest.
While the Rangers finished with better shooting percentages, including from three-point range and free throws, Northeast outscored Northwest 58-38 in the paint, 38-5 off turnovers and 48-19 off the bench. Three Tigers reached double figures, led by 19 points from Ru Mills and 14 from Byrd.
Four Rangers reached double digits, led by 13 points from Ja'Quise RIchmond and 12 off the bench from LaMarcus Crawford. Nicholas and Tyler Shephard accounted for 10 points each, and Caleb Hunt tallied a team-best eight rebounds.
Northwest will now set its sights on a battle with Pearl River, scheduled for Monday, February 3 at Howard Coliseum. The Wildcats are riding an eight-game winning streak, including their most recent 75-67 victory against Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 P.M. with live coverage on Action News 5 Plus and Ranger TV.
