Bulldogs gearing up for Tigers

PERKINSTON — Since Mississippi Gulf Coast last played Northeast Mississippi, the Bulldogs have won seven of nine games.

The teams meet again in the NJCAA Region 23 Men's Basketball Tournament semifinals Thursday. The teams are scheduled to tip off the fourth game of the day at 7 p.m.

The tournament has been moved to Tougaloo College's Kroger Gym in Jackson. The game will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch.

"One thing our team has done is continue to get better," Bulldogs coach Owen Miller said. "The reason for that is we've had good practices, and they've been very good in the film room. They've been locked in the last four or five weeks of the season."

Third-seeded Gulf Coast (18-9) traveled to Booneville on Feb. 5 against the Tigers (27-4), who are the second seed. The Bulldogs were up seven with 3:30 to play but couldn't hold on. The Tigers outscored the Bulldogs 17-5 down the stretch to win 80-75.

Jabbari Barry (Fr., Lake Charles La./Barbe) had 25 points to lead the team, and Duran Parish (Fr., Biloxi/Biloxi) had 12 points, six assists and five rebounds.

"They're not going to beat themselves," Miller said. "They're good on both ends. They change their defenses up. We'll have to play well to give ourselves a chance to win."

Gulf Coast will be looking to advance to the region finals, which will be played Friday night. Two wins would give the Bulldogs their fourth overall trip to the national tournament and first since 2009.

NJCAA Region 23 Men's Basketball Tournament

First Round

Saturday, March 9

Higher seed hosts

No. 9 Baton Rouge 70, No. 8 Copiah-Lincoln 65

No. 5 Holmes 81, No. 12 East Central 69

No. 10 Pearl River 74, No. 7 Itawamba 64

No. 11 Meridian 100, No. 6 Southwest Mississippi 96

Quarterfinals

Monday, March 11

Higher seed hosts

No. 1 Jones 80, No. 9 Baton Rouge 75

No. 5 Holmes 81, No. 4 East Mississippi 68

No. 2 Northeast Mississippi 71, No. 10 Pearl River 55

Meridian at No. 3 Gulf Coast 88, No. 11 Meridian 82

Semifinals

Thursday, March 14

Kroger Gymnasium, Tougaloo College

Jackson, Miss.

Jones vs. Holmes, 3 pm

Northeast Mississippi vs. Gulf Coast, 7 pm

Finals

Friday, March 15

Kroger Gymnasium, Tougaloo College

Jackson, Miss.

Championship, 7 pm

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