Pirates move winning streak to 6, pound Northark 110-88

The North Central Missouri College men continue to play blistering February basketball, pushing their winning streak to six with a 110-88 blowout of the North Arkansas Pioneers on Saturday afternoon at the Ketcham Community Center.

The Pirates offense was on ‘full-throttle’ early, with NCMC racking up 58 first-half points in gaining a 58-43 halftime lead.  Major Finley led the team with a 26 point afternoon, with Joshuah Goss adding 21 (including 6 of 7 from three-point land), Jalen Gant 14, and 11 each from Demetrius Houston, M.J. Johnson, and Dee Scruggs.

The NCMC men host the Culver-Stockton JV tonight (Monday night) at 7 o’clock, before finishing Region XVI regular season play on Thursday night at 7 o’clock against St. Louis, also at the Ketcham Community Center.

In Saturday’s opener, the Lady Pirates had to deal with another injury, as freshman forward Sarah Lamp left the contest with North Arkansas with a knee injury near the end of the first half.

The Lady Pirates showed grit in, down to a six-player rotation, fighting back from a 33-23 halftime deficit to tie the Lady Pioneers at 49 after the third quarter, but a 19-8 advantage for Northark, over the final 10 minutes, tipped the scales to the nationally-ranked (15th in NJCAA D-2) team from Harrison.

Center Sydnee Garrett led Northark with 22 points, while Jolene Shipps added 17, and Hannah Villines 14.  The Lady Pioneers are now 19-3 on the season.  Kendey Eaton led the Lady Pirates, and all scorers, with a game-high 26 points.

NCMC, dropping to a mark of 20-7, will finish the regular season this week with a home date with St. Louis at 5 o’clock on Thursday night, and a noon tip at North Arkansas, Saturday from the Northark campus in Harrison, Arkansas.  The Lady Pirates will have either a #1 or #2 seed for next week’s Region 16 semifinals at Lincoln University in Jefferson City.

Saturday’s doubleheader was played around the NCMC Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Day ceremonies, as former women’s basketball and softball coach Max Mothersbaugh, Lady Pirate basketball player Cassie Hunt, and baseball player Cle Ross were the latest inductions into the NCMC Hall of Fame.