Commodores win a thrilling battle to earn their 10th victory of the season
Fort Myers, FL-The Gulf Coast Commodores battled through an action-packed game against Florida SouthWestern State, earning a thrilling 74–72 victory and their 10th win of the season.
TThe first half was close, with both teams trading points throughout. Alpha Barry made a three-pointer, and Augustas Merkys added a steal to help build momentum. Traevon Koch drove into the paint and passed to Jabari Quarterman, who made a three to give the Commodores a 31–30.
Moments later, Iyran Francis deflected a pass in the paint for a steal, and Quarterman pushed the ball ahead to Lincoln, who finished with a strong dunk to make it 33–30. Near the end of the half, Lincoln grabbed a rebound with nine seconds left and passed to Koch who took the ball across half court and scored a layup, sending Gulf Coast into halftime with a 35–34 lead.
At the break, Lincoln led the team with 11 points. Quarterman added 6 points and was perfect from behind the arc. Koch scored 5 points. Caulker and Barry chipped in 5 points each as the Commodores and FSW went toe to toe for every basket.
The second half brought even more excitement. Koch fired a no-look pass to Francis in the paint, who threw down a huge slam to keep the Commodores close at 63–65. With 4:39 remaining, Lincoln buried a clutch three to put GC ahead 66–65. Later in the second half, a foul by FSW sent Aiden Caulker to the free-throw line, where he tied the game at 72. With 48 seconds left, Caulker came up with an important steal, leading FSW to call a timeout. After the timeout, Caulker inbounded the ball, and Lincoln took control. He drove to the basket for a layup, bouncing off the backboard, he grabbed his own rebound and scored the putback to give the Commodores a 74–72 lead. FSW was unable to score on their final possession, allowing Gulf Coast to secure the win.
Lincoln finished the night leading the team with 21 points and 8 assists. Cobbs added 13 points, Caulker scored 12, and Francis pulled down an impressive 10 rebounds.
The Commodores will wrap up their week in Tallahassee, Florida, at the TSC Florida Shootout on December 6–7. They'll face Miami Dade on December 6 at 12 p.m. EST and St. Petersburg on December 7 at 12 p.m. EST.
