The road was not kind to the Southwest Bears Monday night as they dropped a South Division game to Pearl River in Poplarville 77-65. The Southwest ladies also went down, 69-48.
Featuring four ties in the first five minutes, the men’s game was nip and tuck most of the first half. Six points from Wesley Blackmon and four from Mark Bridgewater helped the Bears (6-7, 1-1 South) to a 10-6 lead with 15:50 on the clock. Pearl River (6-6, 2-0 South) then went on a 17-6 run to take a 23-16 lead with 10:45 remaining in the half.
Blackmon and Bridgewater then combined to force the fifth tie of the half, 23-23, at the 8:08. The Wildcats quickly reclaimed the lead and went on to hold a 39-35 advantage at intermission.
A 19-9 run by Pearl River to open the second half put them ahead 58-44 with 12:40 left in the game. Eleven points from Blackmon over the next 8:00 allowed Southwest to pull back to within seven points, 64-57, with 4:11, but the Bears could come no closer as the Wildcats escaped with the victory.
“I’m really disappointed by my guys’ lack of effort and focus (tonight),” said Southwest head coach Casey Carter. “That rests solely on my shoulders and I take full responsibility. I give Pearl River a ton of credit for dominating every aspect of the game.”
Blackmon and Bridgewater scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, to lead the Southwest offense. Cory Lacy scored six points while Michael Hall had five.
Devin Flowers and Mikel Henry both netted three points while Josh Brannon and Christopher Lawrence both scored two. The Bears hit seven of 12 free throws.
Pearl River’s Yondarius Johnson led all scorers with 28 points. The Wildcats hit 17 of 27 charity shots.
