Lady Bobcats fall in Region 23 Tournament
By By Ryan Satcher / staff writer
March 2, 2004
CLINTON Jones County Junior College couldn't overcome missed opportunities in a 69-60 loss to Northwest Mississippi Community College in the Region 23 Tournament on Monday.
The Lady Bobcats scored just four points in the final eight minutes and were unable to put any points on the board in the final three minutes to fall to the Lady Rangers.
The Lady Bobcats fell behind early as Northwest scored from outside and jumped out to a 12-8 lead.
After the Lady Rangers extended the lead to 17-11 later in the first half, Jones came back with a strong surge.
Natalie Jordan scored four points as Jones took over the lead 18-17 with a 7-0 run.
Northwest tied the game at 20 with 9:06 left in the half on three free throws by Nikita Taylor, but the Lady Bobcats answered with a run to stretch out a lead.
Jones used a three-pointer from Jordan to make the score 25-20 and after a basket from Northwest went on a 7-3 run to make the score 32-26 with 4:19 left to play in the first half.
Northwest answered with a 5-0 run to cut the lead to one point at halftime. Jones led 32-31 going into the break.
The Lady Rangers came out strong in the opening minutes of the second half and went on a 10-2 run.
Taylor hit a pair of three-pointers to spark the run for Northwest.
Jones slowly cut into the lead and tied the game at 43 with 15:18 left to play in the game.
The Lady Bobcats used a strong inside game to overpower Northwest and build a small lead.
With 9:38 left to play Jones lost half of its inside firepower, however, as Brittany Baham went down after bruising her knee. The injury kept Baham sidelined for the remainder of the game.
With Baham out, Northwest went on a small run to make the score 55-51.
A three-pointer by Brittany Martin cut the lead to one point and the Lady Bobcats looked to get back on a roll until they lost another inside player. This time Jones lost Shalanda Carter to fouls.
With Carter and Baham out of the game, Jones struggled to put points up. The Lady Bobcats struggled from the field and missed their opportunities.
Northwest led 62-60 with 3:36 left to play in the game and held on to win as Jones went scoreless for the remainder of the contest.
The Lady Rangers hit six free throws down the stretch and used a basket by Laketia Stephens to seal the 69-60 victory.
Taylor led Northwest with 27 points while Marquita Barksdale added 10. Martin led Jones with 14 points.
