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Southwest Mississippi Community College

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Bears come up short at Gulf Coast

By: Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information
Damian Dear

Men's Basketball | 1/14/2020 4:13:00 AM

The Bears pushed host Mississippi Gulf Coast to the brink Monday night in their MACJC South Division contest in Perkinston. But, in the end, it was the Bulldogs who emerged from the game victorious, 71-67.
 
A Spencer Rodgers three pointer and Damian Dear layup helped the Bears take an early 7-0 first-half lead in the game.
 
Four ties and a lead change later, a Rodgers layup gave the Bears a 28-22 lead with 6:47 on the clock.
 
With 0:59 remaining, a pair of Ryan Black treys and a Rodgers free throw gave the Bears their largest lead of the night, 35-28, and they went on to hold a 35-30 advantage at intermission.
 
Two layups and a free throw from Dear helped the Bears move out to a 40-30 lead early in the second half. Gulf Coast (12-0, 3-0) then caught fire, outscoring the Bears 17-2 to take a 47-42 lead with 13:36 left in the game.
 
Black added his fourth and fifth treys of the game to pull the Bears to within 49-48 with 12:24 remaining. But, Gulf Coast then went on a 13-5 run to extend their lead to 62-53 with 7:46 to go.
 
The Bears (7-5, 1-2) were not quite done, however. A trio of free throws from Goodnews Kpegeol and a Dear three pointer cut the Bears' deficit to a single point, 66-65, with 2:49 showing.
 
Unfortunately, Gulf Coast would outscore the Bears 5-2 the rest of the way to secure the four-point victory and remain undefeated.
 
"We handled their pressure well and made some shots in the first half," said Bears head coach Bryan Bender. "But, the change of pace with their 2-3 zone and some foul trouble on our end hurt us to finish the game."
 
"Ryan was huge for us," Bender continued, "and he wanted this game more than anyone. But, we will get another shot at them in the coming weeks. No time to hold our heads (though) as (we have) a huge game against Co-Lin on Thursday. We need everyone in Summit (and) McComb to come out focused and ready to help will us to victory."
 
Black, from nearby Ocean Springs, tied his season high and led the Bears' offense with 17 points in the game. Rodgers totaled 13 points and Dear 12 while Kpegeol netted 10 points. The Bears hit 16 of 27 free throws.
 
Gulf Coast's Dillyn Neely led all scorers with 18 points. He and his teammates were 18-33 at the free throw line.
 
The Bears look to get back into the win column against Co-Lin Thursday night in the South Division matchup. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:15.
 
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Players Mentioned

Damian Dear

#5 Damian Dear

G
6' 0"
Sophomore
Goodnews Kpegeol

#12 Goodnews Kpegeol

G/F
6' 6"
Redshirt Freshman
Spencer Rodgers

#22 Spencer Rodgers

G
6' 4"
Sophomore
Ryan Black

#30 Ryan Black

G
6' 2"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Damian Dear

#5 Damian Dear

6' 0"
Sophomore
G
Goodnews Kpegeol

#12 Goodnews Kpegeol

6' 6"
Redshirt Freshman
G/F
Spencer Rodgers

#22 Spencer Rodgers

6' 4"
Sophomore
G
Ryan Black

#30 Ryan Black

6' 2"
Sophomore
G