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Southwest Mississippi Community College

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Bears move to 2-0 in the South with win at Pearl River

By: Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information
Rodrick Sikes

Men's Basketball | 1/13/2017 6:56:00 AM

Box Score

An important MACJC South Division matchup went the way of the Bears Thursday night as they picked up a huge road win, 60-47, over the Pearl River Wildcats in Poplarville.
 
With the win, their second consecutive, the Bears moved to 8-3 overall and 2-0 in the MACJC's South Division. The Wildcats dropped to 9-2 and 1-1.
 
The game was tight in the early going with seven lead changes in the first 7:40. A Rodrick Sikes three pointer gave the Bears an early 3-2 lead.
 
Trailing 8-7, Sikes' back-to-back treys put the Bears up 13-8, with 12:11 left in the half and they would not trail the rest of the night.
 
A 13-4 run, capped by a James Hawthorne layup with 8:15 before the half, gave the Bears their biggest lead to that point, 20-12.
 
The Wildcats cut the Bears' lead to 23-21 with 2:56 before the break, but Hawthorne scored the final three points of the half to send the Bears into the locker room with a 26-21 advantage.
 
After the Wildcats trimmed the Bears' lead to 30-25, the Bears outscored their hosts 11-6 and took their first double-digit lead, 41-31, on Emanuel Thompson's three pointer with 12:57 left in the game. The Wildcats would not come any closer the remainder of the game.
 
A pair of Thompson free throws gave the Bears their largest lead of the night, 59-41, with 2:10 on the clock and they went on to record the 13-point victory.
 
"I'm really excited for our team to be able to go into a great basketball environment and pull out a victory," said Bears head man Thomas Gray. "I thought (assistant) Coach (Andy) Farrell put together a great defensive game plan together and our guys had a great deal of energy and determination going into the game."
 
"Sean Smith stepped up in a major way tonight with 11 rebounds and eight blocks and really gave us a spark every minute he was in the game."
 
Sikes led all scorers in the game with 20 points, his 11th straight game in double figures. Hawthorne had 11 points with four assists while Hawthorne also scored 11 points and blocked three shots. The Bears hit 12 of 19 free throws.
 
Rodney Mallet led the Wildcats with 15 points. As a team, the Wildcats made four of 12 free throws.
 
The Bears make their first home appearance on 2017 on January 17 with a South Division contest against Meridian. The game is set for a 7:15 start.
 
 
 
 
 
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Players Mentioned

James Hawthorne

#2 James Hawthorne

F
6' 7"
Sophomore
Rodrick Sikes

#14 Rodrick Sikes

G
6' 1"
Sophomore
Sean Smith

#15 Sean Smith

F
6' 7"
Sophomore
Emanuel Thompson

#21 Emanuel Thompson

G/F
6' 4"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

James Hawthorne

#2 James Hawthorne

6' 7"
Sophomore
F
Rodrick Sikes

#14 Rodrick Sikes

6' 1"
Sophomore
G
Sean Smith

#15 Sean Smith

6' 7"
Sophomore
F
Emanuel Thompson

#21 Emanuel Thompson

6' 4"
Sophomore
G/F