Southwest's men's basketball team remained undefeated in conference play when it beat the East Central Warriors 76-56 on Thursday in Decatur.
Both teams came out swinging, as the game was tied 18-18 midway through the first half.
Then, the Bears took control and never looked back. Going on a 23-3 run to finish out the first half, Southwest found itself with a commanding lead of 44-23 at the half.
A lob from Brian Foxworth led to a Leano Rolle slam that capped the opening half and set the tone for the rest of the game.
The teamwork continued to flow smoothly as the Bears held onto their lead throughout the second half.
A key to keeping control for Southwest was staying out of foul trouble. Only one player on the team exceeded two personal fouls, greatly limiting free-throw opportunities for the Warriors.
Another Rolle slam capped off the scoring for the Bears, ending the game as they ended the first half, in control.
“I thought we got off to just a little bit of a slow start, then Dawson came in for Dre who got dinged up,” head coach Corey Schmidt said. “And I thought he really changed the game. Got a couple of offensive rebounds, hit a three, and just played really hard. Then that got everyone else going, and we just took off from there.”
Willingness to be a team player has been vital to the Bears' current success in league action.
“Proud of the guys' focus to keep competing and not have a dip coming out at halftime. We actually grew the lead and just had a really good mindset,” Schmidt said. “A real team effort tonight. We got contributions from so many guys.”
The Bears had four players score in double digits. Cy Merrett led the charge with 16 points. Rolle followed close behind with his own 14 points. Robert Flantroy and Courterius Scott each had 12 points with the former knocking down three 3-pointers in the contest.
The Bears (9-10, 3-0) have the chance to improve to 4-0 in MACCC play when they host Mississippi Delta on Monday.
Lady Bears fall to Lady Warriors
Southwest's women’s basketball team fell short in 68-48 road loss to East Central on Thursday.
After a scoreless opening three minutes, the Lady Bears broke double-digits in the first quarter after failing to do so in the previous two games. The frame finished with the Warriors leading 19-11.
Southwest kept it close in the second, as it shrank the deficit to a 28-33 score line at half in favor of the Warriors.
A slow third quarter from the Lady Bears saw only five points produced as the Warriors stretched their lead to 55-33.
Unable to overcome the large deficit, Southwest would go on to lose 68-48 on the road, moving to 1-2 in conference play.
Gracie Miller led the team with 11 points. Shanell Celestine and Kori Ware also contributed nine and eight points respectively.
“Today was disappointing,” head coach Brent Harris said. “We need to self-evaluate and decide what we are going to do to become a better team.”
The Lady Bears (5-11, 1-2) are back at home on Monday as they face Mississippi Delta for a chance even out their conference record.
