The NW men’s basketball team had another successful week as they racked up two more victories against Briar Cliff and Mount Marty.
The game against Briar Cliff took place on Feb. 4. The Raiders started off ahead and managed to maintain a decent lead for the game’s duration. By the end the Raiders were up 8 points taking home the victory with a final score of 98-90.
The game against Mount Marty looked to be more difficult for the Raiders going in. Mount Marty handed NW a loss during a home game on January 7 and they were looking to do it again, this time on their home court. However, it was not their night as the Lancers only took the lead once and quickly fell behind for good after. The game finished with the Raiders winning by eight points in a final score of 76-66. This game brought the Raiders to a winning streak of seven games and brought their season record to 20-5 and an 80% win rate.
The women’s team did just as well as the men’s team taking a pair of victories against Briar Cliff and Mount Marty as well.
The game against Briar Cliff had a difficult first half for the Raiders as the score stayed tight and the lead changed multiple times with NW behind six points at halftime. However, the Raiders made some big plays and kept the momentum up as the pushed past the Chargers in a strong third quarter performance that put them ahead by two points. The fourth quarter saw the Raiders play more defensively as the Chargers tried to retake their first half lead, but they fell short, and NW triumphed with a final score of 78-72.
The game against Mount Marty was a tight game, the tightest of the season, ending with the Raiders ahead by only one point. The Raiders played well in the first quarter gaining a one-point lead and continued to pull ahead as they gained a nine-point lead by the end of the third quarter. However, Mount Marty had a few tricks up their sleeve as they managed to pull off the highest scoring quarter of the game with a whopping 25 points. However, NW stayed strong shooting a crucial seventeen points which allowed them to stay ahead and pull out a razor thin 62-61 win.
These two wins were a big victory for the team as they were rematches that saw NW bounce back after falling to both teams earlier in the season. These two wins also brought the teams record from a even 11-11 to a positive 13-11.
The men’s and women’s teams played next at home against the Morningside Mustangs on Feb. 11.
