Basketball Game Preview: Northwest Rankin Cougars vs. Pontotoc Warriors

The Northwest Rankin Cougars and the Pontotoc Warriors will round out the year against one another at at 12:00 p.m. on Friday. Northwest Rankin will be strutting in after a win while Pontotoc will be coming in after a loss.

It was a proper cat-fight when Northwest Rankin took on Meridian on Friday. The stars were shining brightly for Northwest Rankin in a 57-38 victory over Meridian. The Cougars pushed the score to 49-28 by the end of the third, a deficit the Wildcats cut but never quite recovered from.

Lauren Howard

Points (Career)

12/20/24 vs Meridian	19
11/26/24 vs Madison Central	16
12/10/24 @ Yazoo City	11
11/12/24 @ Warren Central	11
12/07/24 vs Starkville	9

Among those leading the charge was Lauren Howard, who went 5 of 12 en route to 19 points. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kennedi Smith, who posted ten points and four steals.

Meanwhile, Pontotoc faced Callaway in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Saturday. Pontotoc took a 39-35 hit to the loss column at the hands of Callaway. The Warriors' defeat signaled the end of their three-game winning streak.

Pontotoc's loss dropped their record down to 9-2. As for Northwest Rankin, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 12-4.