By CADE KENNEDY, Sports Editor
The Northwestern men’s basketball team concluded its road trip in Arkansas with wins over Harding and Arkansas Tech.
The two wins that the Rangers strung together required the team to play with one of their signature traits: their toughness.
“The biggest thing about this team is that we’re tough,” said Jordan Franz, the associate head coach of the Rangers. “We’re a very tough team, and we’ve played really really hard.”
The Rangers started the trip on Jan. 20 by travelling to Searcy, Arkansas to take on a Harding squad that had not played a game in two weeks.
The Rangers battled with the Bisons for most of the first half, but the Rangers went on a 9-4 run in the final three minutes of the half to take a seven-point lead heading into halftime, 41-34.
The Rangers and Bisons continued to trade baskets throughout much of the second half, with Northwestern having a twelve-point lead with 10:56 remaining in the game off a layup by Bubba Furlong.
The Bisons proceeded to rally back over the next nine minutes to take an 80-78 lead over the Rangers with only 1:25 left in the game. Each team tried to take control of the game with a minute left, but both teams came up empty on their next possession.
The Rangers tried to score, but could not, as both Malik Parsons and Furlong missed shots. Brian Free then broke free, snatched the ball out of the air and drew a foul, which gave the Rangers a chance at tying the game.
Free made both free throws, and made another pair help give the Rangers an 83-80 victory.
On Saturday, the Rangers rolled into Russellville, Arkansas to face a scrappy Arkansas Tech team.
The Wonder Boys controlled most of the first half, and built up a nine-point lead over the Rangers. Over the final three minutes of the first half, the Rangers went on a 9-0 run to take the momentum with them to the locker room with the scored tied at 34.
The Rangers continued to suffocate the Wonder Boys in the second half, as Arkansas Tech only scored three points in the opening five minutes.
The Wonder Boys eventually scored, but they found themselves in a 56-40 hole when they did. The Ranger lead continued to hover around 16 points, and the Rangers secured another win, 83-67.
