The Southwest Mississippi Community College men’s basketball team remained thick in the hunt for a spot in the upcoming MACJC State Tournament with a close 77-73 road win over Meridian Thursday night.
The win moved the Bears to 11-7 overall and, at 6-4, into a tie with East Central for third place in the South Division. Meridian dropped to 5-14 and 1-9.
Lafayette Rutledge nailed a 3-pointer to give the Southwest an early 3-2 lead in the game. Bryce Baker’s two jumpers, one being a 3-pointer, then put the Bears up 14-8 with 15:52 left in the half.
Emanuel Thompson scored for the Bears to make the score 21-16 with 12:18 on the clock. Terrell Miller then scored seven straight points to push Southwest out to a 28-18 advantage with 9:46 on the clock.
Seven straight points from James Hawthorne gave the Bears their biggest lead of the night, 38-25, with 6:25 before the break. The teams traded baskets the rest of the half before Meridian’s Denarrius Gray drilled a 3-pointer, with 0:07 showing, to leave the Bears with a 47-38 halftime lead.
Meridian outscored the Bears 8-4 to open the second half and pull to within five points, 51-46, with 15:53 left in the game. But, a Guy Johnson 3-pointer helped Southwest outscore their hosts 12-5 over the next 3:51 to stretch their lead back to double digits, 63-51, with 12:01 on the clock.
An 8-0 Meridian run narrowed the gap to 63-59 with 9:45 to play. But, a 3-pointer from Baker helped the Bears score seven of the next nine points to pull back to a nine-point, 70-61, lead with 5:24 left.
Southwest held a 72-62 lead before Meridian made it 72-68 with 0:56 still to play. Thompson then sealed the deal with a layup that made the score 77-70 with 0:08 to play. Gray’s 3-ointer with 0:03 on the clock was too little, too late for Meridian as the Bears held on for the four-point victory.
“It was extremely important,” SMCC head coach Thomas Gray said, “not only for the playoff race, but importantly, seeing how these guys responded to probably our worst game of the season Monday night against Hinds”
“It was a positive thing to see the way our guys responded in a very tough environment,” Gray concluded. “Meridian’s always a tough place to play.”
Miller had a double-double, with 18 points and 13 rebounds, to lead the Bears’ offense.
Rutledge scored 15 points while Thompson added 13 and Baker picked up 10. Southwest was 13-17 from the free throw line.
Ken’ Darrius Hamilton topped Meridian with 18 points. The Eagles made 13 of 21 free throws.
The Bears return to the court Monday night with a “Pink Game”, to help raise awareness of breast cancer, against the Mississippi Gulf Coast Bulldogs Monday night at 7:15.
Fans attending the game are asked to wear pink.
Lady Bears win 71-69
Withstanding a furious fourth-quarter rally from home standing Meridian, the Southwest Mississippi Community College women’s basketball team picked up a 71-69 win Thursday night.
With the win, the Lady Bears moved to 16-3 overall, 8-0 on the road and remained in a tie with Co-Lin for second place in the MACJC South with an 8-2 mark. More importantly, the win clinched a spot for Southwest in the upcoming MACJC State Tournament.
A layup and 3-pointer from Tatyana Turner gave the Lady Bears a 5-0 lead early in the first quarter. Later in the quarter, a jumper from Gabriella Cortez helped the Lady Bears to a 10-0 run that left them on top 19-8 with 2:13 on the clock. They went on to a 22-16 advantage at the end of the quarter.
With Teshia Jones scoring nine points, including a pair of 3-pointers, Southwest took a 33-24 lead with 2:07 left in the second quarter. Chelsea James’ layup with 0:10 on the clock pushed the lead to 39-28 at the end of the half.
Meridian (2-16, 1-9 South) cut the Lady Bears’ lead to six points, 40-34, on a pair of Roshonae Rice free throws with 7:38 left in the third quarter. But, an Alissa Adam jumper with 7:22 on the clock pushed the lead back to eight, 42-34. An old-fashioned 3-point play by Cortez, with 4:23 showing, gave the Lady Bears their biggest lead of the night at 52-36. They led 58-45 at the end of the quarter.
Jones’ 3-pointer with 8:36 left in the game left the Lady Bears with a seemingly comfortable 61-49 lead. It was at that point the hosts came to life. Sparked by a pair of LaShonda Cousin free throws, Meridian outscored the Lady Bears 16-8 over the next 6:08 to narrow their deficit to 69-65 with 2:28 still to play.
Cortez hit a short jumper with 1:24 remaining that put Southwest’s lead up to six, 71-65. Andrianna James’ hit a 3- pointer with 0:09 to play that cut the Lady Bears’ lead back to two points, but Meridian was unable to get another shot as the Lady Bears held on for the win.
“We like to keep it interesting,” Lady Bears head coach Brent Harris joked after the game. Harris said his squad got off to a good start “but, give Meridian credit. They would not go away.”
Harris also said that “It’s great to clinch a playoff spot this early.”
There are still four games remaining in the regular season.
Jones paced the Lady Bears’ offense with 21 points, including 4-7 from the behind the 3-point arc. Cortez netted 18 points and picked up eight rebounds. Adam recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 assists. The Lady Bears hit eight of 16 free throws.
Meridian’s Kashari Gordon led all scorers with 22 points. The Lady Eagles made nine of 17 free throws.
The Lady Bears return home Monday night against the Mississippi Gulf Coast Lady Bulldogs at 5:30.
