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NEMCC's #23 Calvin Keaton from Tallahassee, Fla., plays some solid defense for the Tigers against Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Ala., on November 2, 2009 in the season opener.
November 3, 2009
LIONS AND TIGERS…..OH MY….WHAT A FINISH
BOONEVILLE, Miss. – Northeast Mississippi Community College head men’s basketball coach David Robbins and company traveled to Hanceville, Ala., for the season opener where the Tigers faced the sixth-ranked Lions of Wallace State in what proved to be a “rumble in the jungle” of sorts that came down to the final seconds.
Trailing 63-60 with the final seconds ticking away, Tiger sophomore point guard Grant Goolsby (Hickory Flat) attempted a pass to Nick Tate (Holly Springs) for a possible game-tying three pointer, but Tate’s chance never came as the ball sailed out of bounds and the Lions took over with 2.5 seconds left in regulation.
The Tigers were forced to foul on the ensuing inbound pass and Wallace State nailed a pair of free throws to seal the deal for on a final score of 65-60.
“It was a battle out here tonight,” explained Goolsby. “We just came up short at the end, but if we keep playing as a team and put ourselves in a position to win at the end, we should win some games.”
Northeast took the lead early in the first period at 6-4 when sophomore Chris Gamble (Meridian) hit his first field goal of the night. Gamble was the second leading scorer for the Tigers, finishing the evening with 10 points and four rebounds. Goolsby led the Tiger offensive attack with 13 points and went three-of-five from behind the arc.
However, that lead was short-lived as both teams exchanged the lead throughout the first period. At the end of the first half, Lion guard Sergio Crowe (Fayetteville, Ala.) hit two charity shots to give Wallace State the 33-32 advantage going into the locker room.
In the second half Wallace State came out on fire with Crowe hitting from downtown to increase its lead to 36-32.
Tiger’s head coach David Robbins called a quick time-out hoping to put a halt to the quick spark by the Lions. Unfortunately, the Lions would continue the hot streak after the timeout and Northeast was unable to extinguish the heat and trailed for the remainder of the contest.
Sophomore guard L.A. Farmer who finished the game with 22 points, seven boards, and went 7-of-14 from the floor led Wallace State.
Other top performers for Northeast were freshmen point guard Tyler Pritchard (Iuka) who finished with seven points, 2-of-4 from the floor while newcomer Emmanuel Ezejiofo (Raymond) tallied five points, and Spence Wicks (Booneville) finished with four points on 2-out-of-3 shooting.
Robbins’ Tigers (0-1, 0-0) will look to get into the win column on Thursday, November 5 at Bonner Arnold Coliseum when they face-off against the Northwest Shoals (Ala.) Patriots while Ricky Ford’s Lady Tigers will open their season against the Lady Patriots on Thursday.
Tip-off for the women is set for 5 p.m. followed by the men at 7 p.m.
Thursday night’s match-up will be broadcast via the Internet and can be heard by going to the Northeast athletic website http://www2.nemcc.edu/Athletics/INDEX_new.html and clicking on “Listen Live” text or by going to http://www.supertalk.fm/WWMR-supertalk-fm/5037867 and scrolling down the page to the Northeast Tiger Banner and clicking in the banner to get to the live broadcast.
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