UTICA — Over the past few weeks, finishing strong is a trait that Lady Bears head coach Brent Harris said that his team needs to improve upon. In Monday's road contest at Hinds, they did just that in a 74-47 win over the Lady Bulldogs.
 
"We have struggled in that category and even on nights when I said that we did better, the truth was that we really didn't. Tonight was a better finish by a lot of different people in a lot of different spots. I am proud of that," Harris said.
 
In addition to the better finish as a team, the Lady Bears (18-6, 9-2 MACCC) got a huge performance from Kennedee Shelton as the sophomore set a new collegiate career-best with 34 points.
 
"I just feel like we have to play with a lot of energy, it is crunch time," she said. "We have to get ready for the playoffs. We want to lock in a home playoff game."
 
Shelton helped set the tone for Southwest with the first Lady Bear points of the game via a 3-pointer. Both Veronica Williams and Kara Beth Addison followed with long balls of their own before Shelton added another at the 4:30 mark putting Southwest ahead 16-7. She added another two 3-pointers over the next 2:17 of play helping the Lady Bears create some distance.
 
Leading 28-16 entering the second quarter, the hits kept coming for the Lady Bears. Shelton and Addison provided key makes from inside the arch before Morgan Sullivan splashed a shot in, in the closing seconds of the half putting Southwest up 38-24.
 
In the early stages of the second half, the Lady Bulldogs got into a bit of a rhythm and pulled within 12. But the Lady Bears answered with a 9-0 run where a pair of makes from Williams acted as book ends.
 
Makes from Bri Doucet, Michaela Payton, Addison and Shelton helped Southwest pull away even more as the visitors took a 58-36 lead into the final quarter of play.
 
The Lady Bear defense was key in the fourth quarter. While the offense continued to flourish, the defense was a thorn in the side of Hinds as it limited the Lady Bulldog offense to 11 points helping Southwest seal the win.
 
In addition to Shelton's big night, the Lady Bears also got double-digit scoring from Williams who had 13 points and Addison who posted 11.
 
Southwest returns home Thursday to host Itawamba at 5:30 p.m.