END OF AN ERA

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast closed out the Weathers-Wentzell Center in second-half style Thursday night, blowing out Baton Rouge after the break and winning 75-42.

The Bulldogs held Baton Rouge to 18.2 percent shooting from the field in the second half and then cleaned up the boards.

"One thing, I thought our guys did a little better in the second half rebounding the ball," Gulf Coast coach Tim Ryan said. "That was big for us. The zone worked in the first half, but we couldn't rebound."

Gulf Coast (3-4) broke a four-game skid. Baton Rouge is now 3-5.

Demarcus Powe (Fr., Meridian/Meridian) led Gulf Coast with 15 points, while Javeon Gordon (Fr., Mount Olive/Mount Olive) just missed a double-double with 12 points and a team-high nine rebounds.

Gulf Coast led 32-27 at halftime and then scored 20 of the first 24 second-half points to take control. The Bulldogs shot 61.5 percent from the field after halftime.

They had 19 assists to just nine turnovers, forcing 17 Baton Rouge turnovers.

"I thought the guy who had a good game and ran the team was Donovan (Sanders)," Ryan said. "He only had three points, but eight assists with one turnover. That was huge for us."

Darius Dawson (So., Sumter S.C./West Florence) had 13 points and seven rebounds. Jabarie Robinson (Fr., Raymond/Raymond) added 10 points.

The Bulldogs play their first game in the new Dantzler Arena on Monday. They'll host Royal Ambassadors in the last game of a tripleheader that starts with the MGCCC Thanksgiving Classic hosted by the Gulf Coast women's basketball team.

Gulf Coast honored former men's basketball coach Wendell Weathers with a pregame ceremony. He carried the legacy of his father, Bob Weathers, whose name is on the front of the building. Together, they won more than 1,200 games, all with teams who called the Weathers-Wentzell Center home. Tommie Weathers, the wife of Bob, was also in attendance. Bob Weathers passed away in 2018.

Wendell Weathers was given a ball signed by all the members of the men's and women's basketball teams, along with other mementos. 

"I was glad to see Coach here tonight, and his mom," Ryan said. "There's a lot of tradition here, and although I haven't been here long, it sure meant something to me. The fact that we go out with a win really honors the people who came before us."

For more information on MGCCC's 11 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.