It was extremely chilly outside of the Rossville Athletic Center on Friday night, and it wasn't much better inside as far as Georgia Northwestern Bobcats and Lady Bobcats were concerned.
Both teams endured very cold shooting nights in their first home game in over a month as they were swept by former NJCAA region foe Southern Crescent Tech.
Southern Crescent women 60, Georgia Northwestern 50
The Lady Tigers from Griffin, Ga. had just five players in uniform, while the Lady Bobcats suited up just seven on the night. Southern Crescent grabbed a 15-13 lead after the first quarter, but used a 9-2 run to open the second quarter and go up by 11.
However, Georgia Northwestern would stay within striking distance as they went into halftime down by six points, 27-21, and they would continue to chip away in the early stages of the third period as they cut the deficit to 30-29 in the first 90 seconds of the half.
But the Lady Tigers would respond by closing out the quarter on a 15-3 run to push their advantage into double digits starting the fourth. They would continue to add to their lead as the final stanza continued, taking their biggest lead, 54-37, with just over six minutes to play.
Georgia Northwestern would have one more run in them. Taylor Bethune hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to cap a 12-0 spurt that pulled the home team to within five points with 3:19 to play.
But that would be as close as the Lady Bobcats would get. Katy Phillips and Mia Clark, who combined for 14 points on the night, would both be whistled for their fifth fouls shortly thereafter and Georgia Northwestern would get no closer.
Tori Harvey had 13 points to lead the Lady Bobcats, followed by 11 points from Bethune and eight by Clark. Christina DeSalvo had seven points. Phillips finished with six, while Madison Lewis had five points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
The Lady Bobcats held Southern Crescent to just 37 percent shooting, but shot just 28 percent from the floor for the game.
Kayla Mosquera had 26 points for the Lady Tigers to lead all scorers. Alexandria Brown dropped in 19 points, while Destiny Murph scored 13 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
The Lady Bobcats (7-4) will play at Hiwassee College on Jan. 18 and will return home to face the Bryan College JV squad on Jan. 22.
Southern Crescent men 58, Georgia Northwestern 32
The Tigers used their height and their length to their advantage in the nightcap as they stormed out to a 33-13 lead at the half and never looked back.
Southern Crescent shot just 37.7 percent on the night, but limited the Bobcats to just 18.4 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from 3-point land. The Bobcats did do well at the free throw line, making 10-of-13 for the game, but they were outrebounded 52-29.
Willie Byrd, Jr. had 12 points for Southern Crescent, followed by Stevante Cromer with 10.
Tyler Phillips was the only Bobcat in double figures as he finished the night with 16 points, including three 3-pointers. Jay Wideman had five points and eight rebounds, while Cole McKeehan also scored five points. J.T. Langford had four and Justin Smith added two to round out the scoring.
Georgia Northwestern will be back at home to face Crown College at 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 16. They will participate in the Oxford Classic in Covington, Ga. on Jan. 19 and 20 before coming back to Rossville to face the Bryan College JV team on Jan. 22.