The East Central Community College Warriors are off to a hot start to begin the 2021-22 campaign as ECCC quickly moved to 2-0 through the first week of play. The Warriors downed the Hinds Bulldogs in Utica to open the season in a tight, 77-74, contest on Monday night before cruising by the Royal Ambassador Lions, 114-34 in the home opener on Thursday.

The Warriors led for much of the contest against the Hinds Bulldogs as they built an early nine-point, 20-11, lead in the first seven minutes of play. That near, 10-point lead held for most of the first half until the Bulldogs cut it to six, 45-39, just before halftime. 

Hinds chipped away at the Warrior lead through the second half and briefly took the lead 74-73, with just 1:18 remaining in the game. Christopher Keys (Quitman) drove to the lane to put ECCC on top, and ultimately lifted the team to a win, on the ensuing ECCC possession with a lefthanded layup. ECCC grabbed a key rebound following a Hinds miss on the other end of the floor to secure the victory.

Jelani Clark (San Francisco, Calif.) was ECCC's leading scorer in the contest with 16 points, while Demajion Topps (Winona) finished with 12. David Berry (Mendenhall) came off the bench to pour in 12, and Keys rounded out double-digit scorers with 11. Damian McKnight (Lake Cormorant) cleaned the glass for ECCC with eight boards in the contest. The Warriors shot 50 percent (28-of-56) from the floor in the win. 

It was all Warriors in the home opener as ECCC scored from all parts of the floor in the big win over the Royal Ambassadors. ECCC led 45-15 at the half and outpaced the Lions 69-19 in the second half to cross the century mark for the first time this season. Keys led ECCC with 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting and in rebounds with eight. James Granger (DeKalb) came off the bench and added 15 points, while Anthony Richards (Jackson), Clark, and John Woods (Rolling Fork) all finished with 10 plus point performances. Topps controlled the ball for ECCC as he posted a team-high nine assists and swiped the ball six times from the Lions.

The Warriors finished the night shooting a blistering 53 percent (46-of-87)  from the floor and posted strong performances from beyond the arc and the free-throw line. 

The Warriors will be back in action at Brackeen-Wood Gymnasium in Decatur next Thursday, Nov. 11 against Mississippi Gulf Coast. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game can be seen live at www.eccclive.com/gold.