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SW fans celebrate after Bears upset Gulf Coast
Chuck Barnes

Men's Basketball Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information

Bears upset 16th-ranked Gulf Coast

Southwest players and fans celebrate the Bears' upset win
A capacity crowd was on hand Thursday night as the Southwest Bears pulled off an incredible 72-71 upset win over the visiting Mississippi Gulf Coast Bulldogs. The win avenged an earlier 94-79 loss in Perkinston. A second-half rally fell short for the Lady Bears as they were defeated 73-65 in the opener.
 
With the win, Southwest moved to 10-11 overall and 5-5 in the MACJC South Division. Though not assuring themselves of a spot in the upcoming state playoffs with the win, the Bears took a giant step toward that goal. The 16th-ranked Bulldogs fell to 19-3 and 10-1.
 
Taking an early 4-0 lead on baskets by Mark Bridgewater and Wesley Blackmon, the Bears extended their advantage to 14-3 with 12:46 to play in the half on another Blackmon two-pointer. Gulf Coast showed itself worthy of its national ranking as the Bulldogs battled back to tie the game at 26-26 with 2:48 left in the half. The teams then traded points the remainder of the half before going into the dressing rooms deadlocked at 31-31. 
 
In the second half, the Bulldogs quickly went on top 33-31 with 19:32 left in the game and slowly built their lead to 54-46 with 11:00 showing on the clock. Unable to put the game out of reach, Gulf Coast watched as the Bears slowly and methodically drew closer before tying the game at 66-66 on a Mikel Henry three-pointer with 3:11 left to play.
 
Just as near the end of the first half, the teams traded points down the stretch. With his squad down 71-70 and only 0:05 left to go, Bridgewater hit one of two free throws to tie the game at 71-71. After turning the ball over on the throw in, the Bulldogs then were whistled for a foul which sent Devin Flowers to the free throw line for Southwest.
 
A collective groan went up from the crowd as Flowers’ first attempt was unsuccessful. But, after his second shot went through the net and Gulf Coast desperation shot at the buzzer failed to hit its mark, the crowd rushed the court in celebration.
 
After receiving a post-game dousing of water and ice from his team, Carter said “That was as good a game as I’ve ever been a part of and I’ve been a part of some big ones. This win was not just for our team, but it was for Southwest as a whole.”
 
“Credit first off has to go to (Southwest president) Dr. (Steve) Bishop,” Carter continued. “He met with me Tuesday morning and asked what we needed to do to pack the house tonight. Whatever we did obviously worked because I have not seen such an atmosphere in my five years in the league as good as it was tonight. Thank you to the faculty, staff, students and the community for showing up and showing out.”
 
“Bridgewater, (Cory) Lacy and Blackmon are the guys who lead us,” Carte went on, “and man, did they lead us tonight.” Blackmon scored 21 points on the night, 18 in the second half, to lead all scorers. Lacy tallied 19 points and Bridgewater had 16.
 
 
Flowers finished the night with five points while Christopher Lawrence had four. Henry registered three points with Josh Brannon and Michael Hall both netting two. The Bears made good on 12 of 21 free throws.
 
Angel Matias’ 16 points lead Gulf Coast. The Bulldogs hit 17 of 22 free throws.
 
Southwest hits the road on Monday as the Lady Bears and Bears travel to Ellisville to face Jones County. The ladies’ game gets underway at 6:00 with the men to follow at 8:00.   

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