Despite getting off to a good start and going toe-to-toe with the visiting Holmes Bulldogs throughout the first half of Thursday's home game, the Bears struggled in the second and could not regain their composure, falling 76-55.
 
"They are a tough and physical basketball team and I felt that we didn't respond well to their physicality," Southwest head coach Corey Schmidt said. "I think that at the end of the day I did a terrible job of getting the guys ready and getting a game plan together of how we wanted to attack and be ready to go. That starts with me, and they took us out of what we wanted to do and we never got going on that side of the floor."
 
Kicking-off the game with a make from Corey Lombard, the Bears (10-8, 1-2 MACCC) found themselves locked in a battle with the Bulldogs. Holmes grabbed the lead and even though Southwest kept up, it could not regain the upper hand until the 4:03 mark when Jahshawne Joseph connected on a free throw giving the Bears a 22-21 lead.
 
Once again, the Bears watched the Bulldogs take the lead, however this time, unfortunately, they would not jump back ahead.
 
Trailing by five at at the half, the Bears relied upon Mark Drone who provided a field goal and a three-point play early in the second half, but it was met with additional scoring from the Bulldogs who stayed one step ahead.
 
About seven minutes into the second half, Southwest lost the momentum as Holmes went on a run to separate itself. When the dust settled, the Bears found themselves down 62-39 with about 10:00 to go.
 
From there, the Bears continued to fight but it wasn't enough as the Bulldogs sealed the win.
 
LeVionne Lindsey led the Bears with 11 points while Lombard and Tylik Weeks each had 10.
 
Southwest has a quick turnaround and will hit the road Saturday for a game at Northwest Mississippi at 6 p.m. It is a makeup game from two weeks ago that was delayed due to inclement weather in north Mississippi.