Anxious to get over Monday's tough home loss to Lee College, the Bears welcomed in Coastal Alabama – North Thursday hoping to right the ship and get back into the win column. But the Coyotes grabbed the lead late and the Bears couldn't respond as they fell 82-78.

"We came out and hit a couple of shots early and I thought that we were playing well, moving the basketball," Southwest head coach Corey Schmidt said. "I thought that as the game went on, the ball didn't move as well, we took tougher shots and we weren't making them. Guys were not getting to the next play and getting back on transition."

The Bears (2-4) quickly fell behind 5-0 but roared their way afterward, scoring eight-unanswered points on a field goal from LeVionne Lindsey followed by 3-pointers from Tylik Weeks and Hami Ndiaye. The Southwest lead ballooned to as much as nine at 16-7 with 14:49 to go in the first half following a 3-pointer from Lindsey.

The Coyotes narrowed the gap but the Bears maintained their lead until the 5:08 mark when the visitors jumped head for the first time at 33-30. For the remainder of the half, a back-and-forth battle ensued with the Bears taking a 42-40 lead into the locker room at the half.

Southwest opened the second half with a 6-0 run to increase its lead to 48-40 but the Coyotes answered with an 7-0 run of their own to pull within one once again.

The Bears maintained their lead over the next few minutes of play and got a boost from Lindsey who made a heads up play on both ends of the floor. After Coastal got possession of the ball following a steal, Lindsey dropped back and contested the fast break layup opportunity and blocked the shot. Following the block, he raced back up court and was rewarded for his hustle getting a pass underneath the goal before laying it in giving Southwest a 53-47 lead.

About halfway through the second half, the Coyotes jumped back on top before another back-and-forth battle took place. With about three and a half minutes to go, Southwest led 73-68 but the momentum swung toward the visiting side.

Coastal grabbed the lead before the Bears tied the game at 75 following a Weeks basket. Despite this, the Coyotes got a big 3-pointer during the next possession, which put them back on top and gave them a lead that they unfortunately didn't relinquish for the rest of the contest.

Weeks led the Bears with 30 points while Fazl Oshodi had 16 and Lindsey 15.

The Bears will continue their homestand on Monday at 7:30 against the Southern-Shreveport Jaguars on Day 1 of the 2024 Southwest Coca-Cola Classic.