8th-seed Gulf Coast preps for hot Bears team

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast will host a red-hot Baton Rouge squad Thursday when the Bulldogs host the first round of the NJCAA Region 23 men's basketball tournament.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. after the Gulf Coast women's postseason game concludes. The eighth-seeded Bulldogs (17-11) beat the ninth-seeded Bears (19-8) on Jan. 9.

"They haven't lost since we played them, 13 straight," Gulf Coast coach Owen Miller said. "Obviously, they're playing well. It was a close game over there. They're big across the board and play a lot of guys. We'll have our hands full."

Buy your tickets ahead of time to save money. It costs $7 for adults or $5 for youth online, or $10 and $7 at the gate. Tickets are available at http://mgcccbulldogs.com/tickets, and the game will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch.

Baton Rouge ranks fourth in the country in rebounding (45.1 rpg) and ninth in offensive rebounding (15.5 rpg). The Bears got 18 offensive rebounds the first go-round.

Gulf Coast got 25 points from Jabbari Barry (So., Lake Charles, La./Barbe) and 20 from Kaue Kalinowski (So., Curitiba, Brazil/Divine Savior) in Baton Rouge. Barry made a fadeaway baseline jumper to tie the score at 83 with 16.4 seconds to play, and Larry Lee (So., Utica/Raymond) made two free throws with 6.6 seconds left to finish with 15 points and the win.

"We try to make every game the biggest game on the schedule," Miller said. "We'll approach this the same way. It's the next game, so it's the biggest. Obviously, there's more at stake. It's survive and advance."

The winner will travel to Ellisville on Monday to play top-seeded Jones. Tipoff will be at 7 p.m. 

NJCAA Region 23 Men's Basketball Tournament

First Round

Higher seed hosts

Thursday, March 6

No. 5 Hinds vs. No. 12 Coahoma, Utica, 6 p.m.

No. 6 Holmes vs. No. 11 Mississippi Delta, Goodman, 6 p.m.

No. 7 Southwest Mississippi vs. No. 10 East Central, Summit, 7:30 p.m.

No. 8 Gulf Coast vs. No. 9 Baton Rouge, Perkinston, 7:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals

High seed hosts

Monday, March 10

No. 1 Jones vs. Baton Rouge-Gulf Coast winner, Ellisville, 7 p.m.

No. 2 Pearl River vs. Southwest-East Central winner, Poplarville

No. 3 Itawamba vs. Holmes-Mississippi Delta winner, Fulton

No. 4 Northeast Mississippi vs. Hinds-Coahoma winner, Booneville

Semifinals

Played at Ellisville

Wednesday, March 12

Finals

Played at Ellisville

Thursday, March 13

For more information on MGCCC's 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.