Dominant second half lifts EMCC Lions to 91-72 road win over Jones

ELLISVILLE – A dominant second half keyed East Mississippi Community College's 91-72 men's basketball road win over league-leading Jones College during Monday's MACCC hoops action played at A.B. Howard Gymnasium. In women's play, EMCC dropped a 68-50 decision to the Bobcats.

In the men's nightcap, the Lions overcame a 36-35 halftime deficit and quickly set the tone by scoring the first 10 points of the second stanza to move ahead by nine points (45-36) just three minutes into the half. After Jones trimmed the margin to five points (45-40), the hot-shooting visitors responded with 10 more unanswered points to take command of the contest.

While connecting on 57 percent (17-30 FGs) of their second-half shot attempts, including 7-of-12 (58%) from three-point range, the Lions increased their advantage to 20 points (66-46) midway through the half on Hunter McCutcheon's fifth three-pointer of the contest. Showing renewed energy and purpose following the break, EMCC also limited the Bobcats to just 33 percent (11-33 FGs) shooting while outscoring them, 56-36, during the second half.

The opening half saw the visitors take an early 15-9 lead before the Jones men responded with a 17-2 run to move ahead, 26-17, by the 6:52 mark. The Lions answered with a 15-4 spurt late in the half to give them momentum heading into the final 20 minutes of play.

During their commanding second-half performance, the Lions maintained their double-digit advantage for the final 15 minutes of the contest following one of McCutcheon's triples. The closest the Bobcats would get during that span was 10 points on two occasions late in the game, but EMCC countered with 10 unanswered points down the stretch on the way to avenging its December home setback (82-76) to Jones.

With 16 second-half points, EMCC's Nick Walker recorded his 19^th career double-double with a career-high 27 points (10-16 FGs & 7-8 FTs) and 13 rebounds. McCutcheon followed with a season-high 19 points by hitting 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. Tremaine Dixon Jr. scored all of his 16 points following intermission, while Andrew Mason added 11 points for the Lions, who evened their overall record to 11-11 and improved their conference mark to 4-3.

In absorbing just their second league loss and fifth overall setback of the season, the Jones men (19-5, 6-2) were led by Ky Pernell and Malik Franklin with 26 and 20 points, respectively.

The women's contest featured a matchup between teams both looking for their first conference wins of the year. The home-standing Bobcats led the entire game, owning an early 14-6 lead after the opening quarter and claiming a 28-19 halftime advantage.

The Lady Lions, who had earned a 66-49 home win over Jones College in a non-conference matchup back in December, managed to cut their deficit to six points on four occasions to begin the second stanza. Jones began to take command of the rematch by scoring nine unanswered points to stay ahead by double figures for the game's final 15 minutes.

EMCC got as close as 11 points early in the fourth quarter, but the Bobcats put together another 9-0 run midway through the quarter to essentially seal the eventual 18-point victory.

Hannah McDougle was a bright spot for the Lady Lions (3-18, 0-7 MACCC) in scoring a career-high 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting in addition to grabbing seven rebounds. Fellow sophomore forward Nakeria Scales followed with nine points and eight boards for EMCC.

The Jones women were led by Valencia McFall with a game-high 24 points. La'Genesis Johnson registered a double-double with 15 points and 20 rebounds, while Khyla Ragins approached a triple-double effort with 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Bobcats.

The East Mississippi basketball teams are scheduled to play host to the Trojans of Mississippi Delta Community College on Thursday (Feb. 15). A 5:30 p.m. women's game will be followed by a 7:30 p.m. men's contest at Keyes T. Currie Coliseum on the Scooba campus.