Box Score
PINEVILLE, La. – The Louisiana College men couldn't have scripted a better end to their regular season Monday night. With longtime coach Gene Rushing back on the bench little more than a week after being hospitalized due to complications arising from a hernia, the Wildcats logged their third-straight win with an 80-63 showing against rival Mississippi College.

LC (10-13, 9-11 American Southwest Conference), which defeated Mississippi College on the road earlier this season, completed a season sweep of the Choctaws (9-15, 7-13 ASC) for the first time in school history.

“It was a big deal for us to finally get that monkey off our back,” senior point guard Jelani Mitchell (St. Martinville, La./St. Martinville HS) said. “And to do it with Coach Rushing back on the bench made it that much more special.”

Rushing had been hospitalized while on a road trip last weekend. In his absence Louisiana College Athletic Director Darrell Payne, who played on a national championship basketball team at Tennessee-Chattanooga, served as coach.

“It was good to see coach back again,” Mitchell said. “He was a little bit more calm than usual. We're used to him yelling a little bit more … I think he was actually angrier because he knew he couldn't yell … but he's back to being the same old Coach Rushing. It was to get a win for him in his return. Now we got to find a way to keep it going in the conference tournament.”

Mitchell capped off an amazing three-game stretch, one in which he never amassed less than eight assists, with a seven-point, 10-assist performance against MC.

Junior post Romanoskie Williams (Bunkie, La./Bunkie HS) added 12 points and eight boards off the bench.

The star of the night, though, was senior post Korey Salmon (Deville, La./Bunkeye HS) who put up 24 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks and three steals in his final game at H.O. West Fieldhouse.

He also started and ended the Wildcat's night with powerful dunks. Just moments after winning thetip for LC, Salmon caught an alley-oop from Mitchell and slammed it home with two hands in the north goal. In the second half, he took a steal coast-to-coast and finished with two hands in the south.

“It's always a goal of mine to play my very best in every game,” Salmon said. “So, I was pleased with my performance tonight. To me, though, the bigger story is that this team fought hard and got our third win in a row. That was the thing we talked about all last week. Go 3-0 to get momentum going into the conference tournament.”

The Wildcats had already secured a berth in the American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament in Belton, Texas, last Thursday with an upset win over East Texas Baptist but Thursday's win over MC landed LC in third place in the ASC East.

That means that the Wildcats will face ASC West No. 2 Hardin-Simmons in the opening round. That game will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.