PERKINSTON, Miss. — The Pearl River men's basketball team dug itself into an early hole and couldn't recover from it Thursday night on the road against rival Gulf Coast, falling 64-58.
"I thought we played hard in spurts, but we gave up way too many offensive rebounds," head coach Chris Oney said. "You can't make them miss and give them extra opportunities. We were right there in the game, and every timeout, we'd talk about pursuing the basketball when they missed, and we didn't do that tonight."
GAME RECAP
Pearl River (18-3 overall; 5-1 MACCC) fell behind 12-2 against Gulf Coast (12-7; 4-3) just five minutes into the contest. Ta'Zir Smith (Woodbridge, Va.; Virginia Academy) knocked down a 10-foot jumper, and Cedquavious Hunter (Como; North Panola) drained a 3-pointer to pull the game within five points, 12-7.
The Wildcats pulled within three points at 20-17 a little while later, thanks to another Hunter 3-pointer and a layup from underneath the basket by Austin Green (Sicklerville, N.J.; Timber Creek Regional).
Every time Pearl River cut the lead closer, MGCCC surged ahead. Despite the Wildcats' best efforts, MGCCC walked into halftime holding a 13-point 41-28 lead.
PRCC needed a great effort in the second half and came out of the gate on fire. Smith knocked down a 3-pointer, and Ezereke Dawson Jr. (Plant City, Fla.) caught a pass down low to pick up an easy basket. Green fought for an offensive rebound and put it right back up, and a perfect trip to the free-throw line followed to cut the deficit to just four points at 41-37.
The Bulldogs surged right back, dominating the next few possessions to extend their lead back out to 11 points, 50-39.
Dyllion Redmond (Jackson; Callaway) followed a layup by banking a 3-point shot off the glass to make it a 50-44 ball game.
PRCC continued to keep the game within striking distance, but nearly every basket was matched by Gulf Coast. The Bulldogs eventually earned a 64-58 victory.
LEADING THE WAY
Hunter had a team-high 16 points on the night. Smith collected 12 points. Redmond and Green finished with 11 each.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats return to Marvin R. White Coliseum on Monday for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff against Northwest.
TUNE IN
All home Pearl River basketball games are livestreamed for free at PRCCMedia.com/Gold. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the "Pearl River CC" channel from their app stores.
Games will also be available over the air in Pearl River County by tuning into 1320-AM and 106.9 FM. The radio broadcast is also available at WRJWRadio.com and by downloading the WRJW app.
TICKETS
To help improve traffic flow and fan experience, PRCC athletics box offices will be cashless in 2023-24. Only credit and debit cards will be accepted at the box office. Fans are encouraged to beat the lines and purchase their tickets in advance at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).