It was a battle on Thursday night, but the East Central Community College Lady Warriors ended a three-game losing streak with a stellar 59-49 win over the East Mississippi Lady Lions. With the win, the Lady Warriors improve to 8-9, 4-6 on the year, while the Lady Lions fall to 8-10, 5-5.
After a slow start in the first quarter neither team was in control, but a 9-2 EMCC run, capped off with a three-pointer from Ciara Jackson, put the Lions on top by four, 11-7, with three minutes to play in the first frame. The Lady Warriors hit back with a pair of free throws from Mirial Cannon (Madison) and a big basket from Sylvia Jones (Brighton, Tenn.) to tie the game 11-all after one.
The game saw another tie early in the second quarter with back-and-forth action down the floor, but ECCC caught fire and went on a 12-2 scoring onslaught two minutes into the quarter. The huge run was led by dominating paint play from both Myeisha Scott (Jackson) and Kaedre Denson (Philadelphia) and most baskets were the results of EMCC turnovers. After the Lady Warriors' burst, ECCC led 25-15 and was the turning point of the contest.
ECCC maintained their lead as they outscored the Lady Lions, 15-13, in the third quarter and eventually grew the lead to as much as 14, 59-45, in the final minutes of the game as the Lady Warriors cruised to the win.
Three Lady Warriors posted double-digits in the scoring column with Scott and Jones both posting team-high 12-point performances. Denson finished with 10. Scott cleaned the glass for ECCC with nine rebounds, while Shemaiah Smith (Terry) came off the bench and hauled in eight. Wynter Taylor (Dallas, Texas) had a strong game as she dished out five assists. The Lady Warriors also limited turnovers as they only posted 10 in the contest but were outrebounded 48-40. ECCC finished the night shooting 43 percent from the field and a much-improved 82 percent from the free-throw stripe.
EMCC was led by Siarra Jackson's 17 points, while Shakira Wilson scored 16. The Lady Lions shot 27 percent from the floor.
The Lady Warriors are on the road on Monday, February 7 as the team travels to Holmes to take on the Lady Bulldogs (1-17, 0-9) at 6 p.m. Links to the game will be posted when they become available.
For more information on East Central's athletic teams please follow our social media pages on Twitter (@ECCCAthletics) and on Facebook (ECCCAthletics).
Warriors Fall to No. 20 Lions, 74-65
The East Central Community College Warriors pushed the No. 20 East Mississippi Lions to the limits on Thursday night as ECCC tied the game at 57-57 midway through the second half, unfortunately, EMCC was able to sneak out a 74-65 victory down the stretch. ECCC fell to 4-12, 2-8 on the year, while the Lions improved to 15-4, 8-2.
The night started off hot for the Warriors as Christopher Keys (Quitman) nailed a three-pointer on the first possession of the contest. The teams would go toe-to-toe over the next 19 and a half minutes as the game was tied five times during the first half. The Lions closed out the first half on a 5-0 run to take a 32-27 lead into the break.
The second half was more stellar basketball as the Warriors came out of the locker room and instantly closed the gap with baskets from Keys and David Berry (Mendenhall). Five minutes into the second, the Warrior offense found their rhythm and rattled off an 11-3 run with impressive play from Keys and a pair of back-to-back three-pointers from Damian McKnight (Lake Cormorant). With 14 and a half to play, the Warriors were on top, 44-40.
The teams began to trade baskets for the next seven minutes, but some EMCC three-pointers allowed the Lions to chip into the lead and eventually knot the game at 57-all. A late three-pointer from EMCC's Jakorie Smith put the Lions in front and the Warriors were just unable to get back into the game down the stretch.
Keys finished the night with a career-high 28 points, while James Granger (DeKalb) scored 11 after knocking down a pair of threes in the first half.
EMCC was led by Smith who posted 28 points, while Traemond Pittman scored 17.
ECCC is back in Decatur on Monday night as the team takes on the Holmes Bulldogs (6-11, 2-6) at 6 p.m. in Brackeen-Wood Gymnasium. Fans that cannot attend can watch the action live at www.eccclive.com/gold.
For more information on East Central's athletic teams please follow our social media pages on Twitter (@ECCCAthletics) and on Facebook (ECCCAthletics).
