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Southwest Mississippi Community College

Scoreboard

Bears overwhelm visiting Meridian, 88-61

By: Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information
John Knight III

Men's Basketball | 2/8/2018 10:32:00 PM

The Bears returned to the win column Thursday night as they overwhelmed the visiting Meridian Eagles in an 88-61 win MACJC South Division win to complete the season sweep.
 
The Bears fell behind 6-0 early in the game before a John Knight III layup and a three pointer and layup from Antonio Cowart, Jr., put them on top 7-6 with 15:19 left in the half.
 
The teams then traded baskets for the next several minutes before a Ricardo Lynch trey started the Bears on a 9-0 that left them on top 25-16  with 8:09 before intermission.
 
Meridian (5-14, 2-8) then began a 13-3 run that saw them go back on top, 29-28, with 3:55 on the clock.
 
The Bears then closed the half on a 10-0 run to close out the half, capped by Cowart, Jr.'s trey, to end the half with a 38-29 advantage.
 
Opening the second half on a 12-1 run, capped by another Cowart, Jr., three pointer, the Bears quickly extended their lead to 50-30 with 16:21 left in the game.
 
Outscoring the Bears 8-2 over the next 2:06, Meridian pulled to within 52-38 with 14:15 still to play. But, that would be as close as they would get the rest of the way.
 
Cowart, Jr.'s, fourth trey of the game, with 5:48 left, put the Bears on top 78-52. They then took their largest lead of the night, 86-59, on a T J Ben free throw with 1:28 on the clock and they went on to win by the same margin.
 
"I was just excited to see our guys play together," said Bears head coach Thomas Gray. "I think our guys obviously saw tonight what they can do when they play together and I pray that carries on. We've got some really important games coming up down the stretch and I really pray that we can continue working together because I think literally the sky's the limit for this team."
 
Knight III and Cowart, Jr., scored 24 and 23 points, respectively, to pace the Bears' attack. Both added six assists. Lynch finished with 13 points. The Bears made 17 of 28 free throws.
 
Meridian was led by Kylan Hamilton's 23 points. The visitors were 14-22 at the free throw line.
 
The Bears hit the road for their next game, traveling to Jones County Monday night for a 7:30 South Division matchup.
 
 
 
 
 
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Players Mentioned

John Knight III

#3 John Knight III

G
6' 2"
Freshman
Antonio Cowart, Jr.

#4 Antonio Cowart, Jr.

G
6' 2"
Sophomore
Ricardo Lynch

#10 Ricardo Lynch

F
6' 7"
Sophomore
TJ Ben

#21 TJ Ben

G/F
6' 4"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

John Knight III

#3 John Knight III

6' 2"
Freshman
G
Antonio Cowart, Jr.

#4 Antonio Cowart, Jr.

6' 2"
Sophomore
G
Ricardo Lynch

#10 Ricardo Lynch

6' 7"
Sophomore
F
TJ Ben

#21 TJ Ben

6' 4"
Freshman
G/F