It was a battle of NJCAA Top-10 basketball squads in Plano this afternoon as the No. 8 McLennan Highlassies fell to the No. 9 Collin Cougars 82-71 in North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference play.
 
Driving attacks to the basket was the play of the game for both teams to start the first quarter. Collin began the scoring with a Waiata Jennings bucket on the opening possession. McLennan's Miannah Little put the Highlassies on the board with a layup less than a minute later. It was a back-and-forth fast-paced game with the two teams trading baskets. The game was tied at 12 with 5:23 to go in the first. McLennan took the lead on a Little 3-pointer from the lead, 15-12. Collin responded with a 7-0 run to build a four-point lead at 19-15. The Cougars extended the lead to six before the Highlassies battled to cut the lead to one, 23-22, with 38.8 seconds remaining in the first. Collin's Jayden Smallwood drove the lane for a basket 10 seconds later to make it 25-22 Cougars at the end of the first.
 
McLennan continued to trail by three, 31-28, with 7:50 to go in the second. Collin began to pull away, using a 12-2 run to extend the lead to double digits, 43-30 with just under two minutes to play before the half. The Cougars led by 13, 45-32, with a minute to play but a last-second shot by the Highlassies; Cynaye Bobbitt cut the lead back to 11 at the break, 45-34.
 
McLennan came out of the locker room fired up and ready to battle. The Highlassies chipped away and cut the lead to four on a nothing-but-net 3-pointer by Aaliyah Holmes from the wing with 6:33 to go in the third, 50-46. The Cougars pushed again down the stretch and led by 10 going into the final period, 66-56.
 
Collin extended the lead to 13 at 71-58 with 7:10 remaining in the game. McLennan responded with a 7-0 run over the next two minutes to trim the lead back to six but that would prove to be as close a the Highlassies would get.
 
Miannah Little led the way for McLennan with 27 points and Saneea Bevley added 10.
 
McLennan: Alicia Mills 0 0-2 0; Aysia Ward 1 1-2 3; Chelsea Wooten 2 0-2 4; Miannah Little 9 7-7 27; Kennedi Rowland 0 0-0 0; Saneea Bevley 3 2-2 10; Jaydyn Bullard 2 4-6 8; Bineta Diatta 2 0-0 4; Aniya Williams 2 0-0 4; Cynaye Bobbitt 1 0-0 2; Aaliyah Holmes 2 3-4 9; Bailee St. Romain 0 0-0 0; Totals: 24 17-25 71.
 
Collin: Caroline Glud Rasmussen 3 1-5 8; Mackenzie Buss 6 5-6 18; Nyapar Mathot 4 2-4 10; Beyonce' Lane 1 0-0 2; Adamari Waddell 0 0-0 0; Jayden Smallwood 1 0-0 2; Mykaila Pickard 3 1-2 7; Kennadi Archibald 1 7-8 8; Waiata Jennings 10 4-4 27; Totals: 29 20-29 82.
 
3-pointers: McLennan 6 (Little 2, Bevley 2, Holmes 2), Collin 4 (Jennings 3, Buss 1);
Total fouls: McLennan 25, Collin 21; Halftime score: Collin 45, McLennan 34; Record: McLennan 15-2 (3-1).