NWF Defense Shuts Down the Eagles, Raiders Win 88-36

NICEVILLE, Fla. - Northwest Florida came away with a lopsided victory over the Tallahassee Eagles 88-36 on Wednesday night in Raider Arena. The Raiders improve to 21-3, 9-1 in the Panhandle Conference.

Northwest Florida Lady Raiders did not look like themselves early on as they were down 9-6 in the first five minutes of the game. The Raiders flipped a switch, holding the Eagles from scoring for over 8 minutes, allowing only 4 points in the second quarter, while NWF scored 24. The 26-0 run that lasted for over 10 minutes, putting the game away in the first half.

The Raiders defense suffocated Tallahassee as they forced 30 turnovers and held the Eagles to 12-46 (26.1%) from the field. Northwest Florida doubled TCC's rebounds, recording 53 to Tallahassee's 26. In the third quarter, Tallahassee did not record a field goal as the Raiders outscored TCC 29-5 out of the intermission. Northwest Florida scored 40 points off Tallahassee's mistakes tonight.

On the offensive side, Sakima Walker was unstoppable as she connected on 14-21 shots. The reigning FCSAA Region VIII Player of the Week made another strong case to go back-to-back as she finished the night with 31 points and 10 rebounds. Destiney McPhaul had a double-double as well, scoring 17 points and grabbing a team-high 12 rebounds. McPhaul also had 6 assists and 3 steals. Zayla Tinner reached double digits as she accounted for 11 points, 7 assists, and 4 steals. 

#7 Northwest Florida (21-3, 9-1) will have a bye this Saturday before heading to Hartsell Arena on Wednesday, February 22nd to take on Pensacola in the third and final matchup with the Pirates this season. The Raiders have won the first two matchups, winning the first one on the road 59-50 and coming away with a 68-58 in Raider Arena. Pensacola (16-10, 3-6) play at Tallahassee on Saturday afternoon.

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