North Central Handed Road Losses

The North Central Missouri College basketball teams were on the road Monday night, traveling to Overland Park, KS to take on Johnson County Community College. The Lady Pirates were no match for top-ranked Johnson County, falling 105-44, while the North Central men suffered a close loss, losing 92-89.
Lady Pirates
The Lady Pirates had their hands full with the number-one team in the nation at the NJCAA Division II level. North Central was able to keep things reasonable in the first half, falling behind 27-14 in the first quarter and trailing 48-28 at halftime.
In the second half, however, Johnson County put it on the Lady Pirates, outscoring the visitors 25-9 in the third quarter. The fourth quarter saw the home team run the score up with a 32-7 run to close the game.
“(Johnson County) was like a well-oiled machine and we were not,” Lady Pirates’ Head Coach Jenni Croy said. “We actually played a decent second quarter, pulling to within 10 at one point. They were just bigger, faster and stronger.”
Despite the lopsided loss, North Central saw 10 of its 11 players score with Madison Winter’s nine points leading the way. Maggie Graves had six points and seven rebounds and Siera Glassford scored six points as well.
With the loss, the Lady Pirates dropped to 1-4 overall on the season.
The North Central women return to their home court at the Ketcham Community Center for their next contest, playing host to the William Penn junior varsity on Thursday, The women’s game will tip off at 5:30 p.m. with a men’s game between North Central and Kansas City Kansas Community College to follow at 7:30.
Pirates
The North Central men nearly overcame a tough first half with a strong rally in the second, but the hole dug early was too deep. NCMC fell behind 39-26 in the opening half, but rallied in the second, outscoring the host school 63-53. It wasn’t enough, however as the Pirates fell by three points.
Terrance Bush broke out with a 27-point night to pace the Pirates. Caleb Berry added 11 points and D’Tavian Walker scored 10 points to go with eight rebounds and two assists. Lorenzo Chisholm and Brandon Stapleton each had eight points off the bench and Xavier Parkman finished with seven points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots.
With the loss, the men fell to 2-3 overall on the season.
The Pirates will be at home tonight, playing host to the Ottawa University junior varsity. Tip time at the Ketcham Community Center is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.