Southwest Mississippi’s men’s basketball team fell 71-64 at home against Co-Lin on Thursday. The Bears led early but faced a comeback from the Wolves in the second half, ultimately losing in a back-and-forth contest.
The game started with Southwest Mississippi jumping out to an early lead. Chidi Nwosu hit a three-pointer to tie the game, and Courterius Scott’s pass to Leano Rolle put the Bears ahead. Southwest Mississippi maintained its lead through the first half, with Cy Merrett closing out with a spin move to extend the advantage to 35-26 at halftime.
Co-Lin responded in the second half, taking the lead back with 15:55 remaining. Merrett quickly reclaimed the lead for the Bears, followed by a steal and score from Rolle. The final 11 minutes were tightly contested, with six lead changes. The Bears found themselves down by 12 with just over two minutes remaining, but a three from Rolle and a quick Merrett three-pointer narrowed the gap to six. Despite their efforts, the Bears could not complete the comeback, missing key shots in the final minutes.
Cy Merrett led Southwest Mississippi with 18 points. Courterius Scott scored 17, and Rolle added 16. Head coach Corey Schmidt credited a momentum shift after a technical foul to the Wolves’ run, which he said impacted the team’s focus. “They executed well on offense during that stretch, and we struggled to score,” Schmidt said. “We need to be more focused and settle down during runs. We played well in the first half, but the second half required better defensive focus.”
The Bears, now 13-14 overall and 7-4 in conference play, return home Monday to face Pearl River.
