Gulf Coast, Pearl River fall in Region 23 Tournament
CLINTON -- Mississippi Gulf Coast saw its season come to an end Thursday in the first round of the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament.
A four-minute scoreless stretch late in the game doomed the Bulldogs, who fell to East Mississippi 89-83. They finish the season 19-7.
"It's the same thing that happened on and off during the game, and it's the same thing that's happened on and off during the year," Gulf Coast coach Wendell Weathers said "They made that run because we took bad shots on offense and they got out in transition."
Gulf Coast finishes the season 19-7, having narrowly missed winning the MACJC South title. The Bulldogs lost in double overtime in the state tournament semifinals last week.
"This team, in my opinion, has accomplished so much more than we ever expected," Weathers said. "These kids have played tremendously hard. They have overachieved.
"They're not a big bunch of guys, but we have played with and beaten teams a lot bigger than we are. They've accomplished so much because of their hard work and they're unselfish play. I couldn't be more proud of what they've accomplished."
East Mississippi (19-7) was also able to match Gulf Coast's speed in a game at A.E. Wood Coliseum on the Mississippi College campus filled with alternating spurts.
Penny Hampton led Gulf Coast with 23 points. Deshawn Jones added 15, Davion Cole-Johnson had 13 and Eliel Gonzalez chipped in 10.
The Bulldogs trailed by eight early but ripped off a 15-2 run to lead 19-14 with 11 minutes left in the half.
Southern-Shreveport 68, Pearl River 66: Pearl River (16-9) fell to Southern-Shreveport in agonizing fashion. Darrion Jacobs put back a missed shot at the buzzer to give the Jaguars a victory in the quarterfinals of the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament at A.E. Wood Coliseum.
The Wildcats had a 13-point lead at halftime, 36-23, but the Jaguars shot 51.5 percent from the field in the second half to chip away at the lead.
This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 6:31 PM with the headline "Gulf Coast, Pearl River fall in Region 23 Tournament ."