Women’s Basketball opens MACCC play with big W

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast opened defense of its MACCC championship with a convincing 74-45 win over East Mississippi.

The Bulldogs improved to 7-6 in the conference opener, and they did it in style.

"For the first time, I felt like we put together four full quarters," Gulf Coast coach Hope Adams said. "Even with the third quarter when we went on a scoring drought, we held them down. We put a lot of stock in our defense. For the first time, we really saw our defense come alive for four complete quarters."

Katelyn Brinkley (Fr., Ridgeland/Ridgeland) and Allison Irby (Fr., Olive Branch/Lewisburg) had career highs with 18 and 14 points, respectively. The Bulldogs were led by Dekyra Mitchell (Fr., Durant/Holmes County) with 19, and Taelar Felton (Fr., Clinton/Clinton) added 16.

Gulf Coast used a 16-3 run over 2:18 of the first quarter, and Mitchell's buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the logo gave the Bulldogs a 21-12 lead after 10 minutes.

East Mississippi (5-8) got was within seven with 3:13 left in the half, but Gulf Coast outscored the Lions 9-1 down the stretch.

The third quarter was a defensive masterclass, with the Bulldogs holding EMCC without a field goal until 6.5 seconds left. The Lions scored only seven points.

Gulf Coast led by as many 31 in the fourth quarter.

Brinkley had 15 of her points in the second half.

"She's one of those players, when she's playing well and dominating the paint, she can put this team on her back," Adams said. "We have a great group of guards but having her inside makes everything flow offensively and defensively. This was the game she needed."

Irby celebrated her birthday with four 3-pointers.

"I told her we got the W for her birthday. She's a pure shooter, but she's a freshman developing her confidence. She put the extra work in on her shot. I was happy to see those shots falling, and I hope she can carry that through the rest of the season."

Gulf Coast is scheduled to play at Holmes on Thursday, but that team is trying to recover from the tragedy of the unexpected death of assistant coach Brooke Walker. Tipoff is supposed to be at 5:30 p.m. in Goodman, but check the Gulf Coast website and social media accounts for updates.

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