Bulldogs move into 4th in MACCC race

Mississippi Gulf Coast put a shaky second quarter behind it, and the women's basketball team ran past Northeast Mississippi after the break to win 64-53 in Booneville.

The Tigers outscored the Bulldogs by 12 to take a 27-20 lead into halftime.

"We just couldn't find the bucket," Gulf Coast coach Hope Adams said. "We didn't have great ball reversals in the second quarter. We went in there at halftime and had a little pep talk, and we were able to start playing our style of basketball and go on a run."

The Bulldogs (8-3) improved to 3-1 in the MACCC and are in fourth place. Northeast falls to 5-9, 1-3.

Elsie Harris (So., Mobile, Ala./B.C. Rain) led Gulf Coast with 25 points. She helped key a big turnaround behind the arc. The Bulldogs missed their first 12 3-point shots, and didn't make the first one until 90 seconds into the third quarter. Harris made all three of her attempts after that point.

"She carried us tonight," Adams said. "She had five assists and six steals. She just covered the stat line. She gave us the energy this team needed."

Simaru Fields (Fr., Gulfport/Gulfport) had 14 points, two assists and two steals. TK Catchings (So., New Hebron/Simpson Academy) narrowly missed a double-double, finishing with nine points and nine boards while adding four blocks.

Gulf Coast faces undefeated Pearl River on Thursday at Dantzler Arena. Tipoff at Perk will be at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch.

"The key against them is to take care of the ball," Adams said. "We had 15 turnovers tonight after we had nine at halftime. I'm really proud of that. As long as we take care of the ball, we're going to be in ballgames with a chance to finish."

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