Undefeated Bulldogs head to Delgado

Mississippi Gulf Coast coach Wendell Weathers doesn't know much about Delgado, the Bulldogs' opponent Wednesday in New Orleans.

What he does know is his team is playing really well, which is the most important thing. Even if it's not something he saw coming.

"If you would have told me this is where we were going to be at this point a month and a half ago," he said, "I'd have told you you were drinking shoe polish or something else you shouldn't have been drinking."

The Bulldogs are the MACJC's last unbeaten team at 9-0 and received votes in the NJCAA poll for the first time this week. They head west Wednesday to play a Dolphins team that is 3-9. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

Two of Delgado's wins are against Bishop State, by a combined seven points. Gulf Coast defeated Bishop State by six and eight points in the teams' two meetings.

Delgado has two guards leading it in scoring, with Jeffery Dixon averaging 11.7 points per game and Markel Williams getting 11.4.

The Bulldogs are averaging nearly 90 points per game, but sophomore guard Internee Hampton's first instinct responding to a question about to how the Bulldogs are playing is about the other end of the court.

"I think we're playing good this year, but we can get better," he said. "We have to get better on defense and get more stops. That will give us a lot of scoring opportunities."

Gulf Coast has three players making more than 45 percent of their 3-point attempts, led by Maurice Stephens' at an even 50 percent. Three others are better than 35 percent, giving the team a 34.9 percent mark from behind the arc.

The Bulldogs are shooting nearly 47 percent from the field.

"These guys are playing really hard and playing together," Weathers said. "They're playing as a unit. There's no ego out there. They just all go play, and they're doing this as a group. As long as they continue to do that and continue to improve on the little things, we're going to always have a chance."

Gulf Coast completes its pre-Christmas break schedule with the trip to New Orleans. The Bulldogs return to action Jan. 7 when Delgado makes its visit to Perkinston.