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11/03/08
NEMCC BASKETBALL TEAMS ROLL THROUGH SEASON OPENERS
BOONEVILLE, Miss.-- Northeast Mississippi Community College men and women’s basketball teams showed they could compete with some of the best in the country in the PSP Industries Tip-Off Classic on the campus of Itawamba Community College in Fulton on October 31 and November 1, 2008.
Ricky Ford’s Lady Tigers captured a pair of victories over Shelton State (Ala.) and Motlow State (Tenn.) in opening the season 2-0 while David Robbins’ Tigers went 1-1 in the two-day tournament knocking off Shelton State in a shootout (109-100) on Friday, October 31 before falling to Motlow State (75-65) on the closing day.
Ford’s Lady Tigers captured their first win of the season – a 90-84 victory over Shelton State – behind a 24-point effort by NJCAA Pre-Season Third Team All-American Eboni Crayton.
Crayton did it on the boards for the Lady Tigers as well when she recorded a double-double in the season opener by pulling down 10 rebounds for NEMCC.
Freshmen Bionca Hill (Corinth) and Rumae Butler (Belmont) stepped up in their first career collegiate game by combining for 30 points in the win.
In the men’s opener, the game hit triple digits on both sides.
Northeast knocked off the defending Alabama state champions 109-100. Shelton State had been ranked 14th in the nation by the NJCAA before the season started.
Sophomore William Burdette tallied a game-high 26 for the Tigers as four other Northeast players checked in with double digits in the scoring column.
Andre’ Southern – a sophomore transfer – hit for 21 while Rictavian Knight, John Sexton and Chris Gamble combined for 43 points.
Knight tallied 16 points in the first half – 12 coming from beyond the arc, while Sexton and Gamble helped the Tigers’ avoid the Buccaneer comeback in the second half with 19 second-half points.
Sexton set the Tigers up for the win when he tallied 11 of his 14 points in the second half – including back-to-back three-pointers with less than 10 minutes to go that broke a 79-all tie.
Sexton banked in a three-pointer as the shot clock expired with 10:02 remaining and then nailed another three from the right wing with 9:17 to go giving the Tigers an 85-79 lead.
Gamble, who transferred to Northeast from Mississippi Valley State University, recorded a double-double in his first game with the Tigers. Gamble pulled down 11 rebounds in combination with his 13 points on the day.
During the second day, the Lady Tigers made it a perfect 2-for-2 in the PSP Industries Tip-Off Classic as Crayton scored 33 points in the win.
On the men’s side, the Tigers ran up against Motlow State, who went 28-4 during the 2007-08 season and were upset in their regional tournament, and dropped a 75-65 decision.
Both Northeast basketball teams return to action on the road at Northwest Shoals Community College (Ala) on Tuesday, November 4 with tip-off at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m.
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