Pirates Basketball couldn't pull out another overtime thriller on Sunday as they came out on the short end of a 96-92 score against John Wood CC. The 6th ranked Pirates trailed by a point at the half and had a chance to win in regulation but Damian Loyd's 3-point attempt came up just short. In overtime John Wood, a team that is receiving votes in the preseason NJCAA DII poll, pulled out the victory.
Leading John Wood to victory was Jarvis Jennings who totaled 28 points. Strong 3-point shooting also helped their cause, going 11-27 from long range.
Coach Esry was quick to take some blame for his team's performance, especially on the final play of regulation. "We thought we had a good play drawn up and he (Coach Hoyt from John Wood) went zone and I probably should have called another timeout. We'll roll from it and learn from it for sure."
NCMC will face another tough test in their next action when they go on the road to face Mineral Area College on Tuesday. The Cardinals are ranked 20th in the preseason NJCAA DI poll and hold a 2-0 record.
