Bears defeat the Wildcats in a two overtime thriller

Thursday January 18, 2024

Baton Rouge, LA: Men's Basketball

This was the fourth meeting all time between the Baton Rouge Bears and the Bishop State Wildcats on the hardwood. Tonight's game, in the Bears Den, was an exciting battle between these two ball clubs that took two overtime periods to settle.  In the end, the Baton Rouge Bears would come away with the 98 to 94 double overtime victory over the Wildcats.

In the first half, the Bears would jump out to a quick 8-0 lead, after three minutes of play, with 5 points by Kialen Phillips and 3 points from Laron Louis Jr.  Bishop State would go on a 10-3 run to pull within one; 11-10 with 14:41 remaining in the half. The Wildcats would tie the game and take their first lead of the ball game 12-11 with two free throws with 13:20 to play.  For the next two minutes of the ball game, it was a back-and-forth affair with the lead changing hands three times with one tie. After the game was tied at 15, the Bears would go on a 15 to 8 run to take a 30-25 lead with 7:03 remaining.  The Bears would continue to look sharp on the offensive end, spreading the ball around. The Bears would take their largest lead, of the first half, 9 points with 2:11 remaining. (40-31). In the first half, the Bears would use their defensive pressure to propel their offense. At the half, the Bears led the Wildcats 43 to 36.

In the second half, the Wildcats would not go down without a fight. The Wildcats would increase their defensive pressure forcing the Bears into multiple turnovers and poor offensive possessions. The Wildcats also increased the tempo of their play, in the first 8 minutes, of the second half. The Wildcats would go on a 17-10 run to tie the game at 53 with 12 minutes remaining. The game would be deadlocked for the next 12 minutes with no team holding greater than a five-point lead. During that time span the game would see four lead changes and two ties. The Bears would take a 3-point lead when Laron Louis Jr would make two free throws after getting fouled on a lay-up with 31.3 seconds, 78-75.  The Wildcats would hit an an-one to tie the game at 78 at the end of regulation.

In the first overtime period, the Bears and the Wildcats would trade buckets and the lead. Kialen Phillips would start the Bears scoring, in overtime, with a jumper to give the Bears the 80-78 lead. The Wildcats would respond with a bucket of their own to tie the game at 80 then they would take an 82-80 lead. Kialen Phillips would hit one of two free throws for the Bears to pull within one 82-81 with 2:48 to play. With the shot clock winding down Bears guard Dashaunte Cormier-Bellard would hit a deep top of the key three pointer to give the Bears the 84 to 82 leads with 1:48 to play. The Wildcats would end up tying the game at 84 with 1:32 left to play. Both teams had opportunities at the end of the first overtime but neither team to covert to take the victory. At the end of the first overtime the game was tied at 84.

In the second overtime period, freshman guard Jaylen Streeter would score 8 of the Bears 14 points to help seal the 98 to 94 double overtime victory.  Like the rest of the game the second overtime period would be a back-and-forth affair between the two ball clubs. Jaylen Streeter would score the Bears first four points to take an 88-87 lead. The Wildcats would take a three-point lead with 2:45 remaining with a pair of free throws. Courtney McCarthy would drill a three pointer for the Bears to tie the game at 91 with 2:29 remaining. Dashaunte Cormier-Bellard would come up big again as he would bank a wing three pointer to give the Bears the 94 to 91 lead with 1:19 remaining. The Wildcats would pull within two 96-94 with 30 seconds remaining but Jaylen Streeter would make two free throws with 18 seconds remaining to seal the 98 to 94 victory.

The Bears were led in scoring by Kialen Phillips with 28 points. The Bears had four student athletes score in double figures, Laron Louis Jr., Kialen Phillips, Courtney McCarthy and Jaylen Streeter. The Wildcats were led in scoring by Seth Grandberry with 21 points.  The Wildcats also had four student athletes score in double figures.

With the victory the Bears improved to 8-10, while the Wildcats fell to 16-3 on the season. The overall series is even with two wins a piece.

Bears Highlights:

Kialen Phillips led all players with 28 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

Jaylen Streeter came off the bench to score 19 points with 5 rebounds, 3 assist and 2 steals.

Courtney McCarthy scored 18 points. He was 5-7 from threes.

Laron Louis Jr. added 11 points with 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block.

The Bears will be back in action on Wednesday January 31, 2024, as they travel to New Orleans to play Delgado Community College at 7:30 pm in the Williamson Center. This will be the first game of conference play for the Bears.

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