No. 4 Raiders outlast Pensacola 65-54

NICEVILLE, FL - A rested Raiders squad returned to the hardwood on Saturday to face off against Pensacola State College in hopes of completing a perfect first round of Panhandle Conference action.  Thanks to a 65-54 victory over the Pirates, NWF did just that and moved their overall record to 20-1 in the process.  The win cements the Raiders' spot atop the conference standings through one-third of the conference slate.

The first half can easily be looked upon as the catalyst for the Raider victory.  NWF outscored Pensacola 43-27 behind tenacious defense and balanced scoring.  Shammah Scott led the way off the bench with 10 first half points while Deshawndre Washington was a stat stuffer with 9 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.  The 16-point margin was built off a strong finish to the period as the Raiders attacked the rim and turned up the defensive pressure.

While the Raiders maintained their defensive efforts in the second half, the offense survived some scoring droughts sprinkled throughout the twenty minutes to keep their double-digit margin in tact.  The distribution of offense was something head coach Greg Heiar had to be pleased with, as five Raiders were in double figures for the evening.  Kam Woods led the team with 12 points, Washington had 11, and with 10 each was Scott, Tre Clark, and Brennan Rigsby.

The No. 4-ranked Raiders will not have a lot of time to enjoy their sterling first round record as the page now rapidly turns to the second round on Wednesday when NWF hosts the Gulf Coast State College Commodores.  The women return to action after a 10-day layoff at 5:30 p.m. and the men will tip-off at 7:30 p.m.

For more information on Northwest Florida State athletics, visit NWFRaiders.com or follow @NWFRaiders on Twitter.