EUNICE, La. – LSU Eunice women's basketball opens postseason play at home on Wednesday as the Bengals host Mississippi Gulf Coast in the Region 23 Tournament.  The action from the HPRE Center is slated to begin at 6:00PM.
 
The Region 23 Tournament has a new look this season thanks to shortened season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.  All 19 teams in the region qualified for the single elimination tournament with play-in games, first round and quarterfinal action all hosted at home by the higher seed.  The semifinals and finals will still take place on the campus of Mississippi College in Clinton, Mississippi.
 
It is the first postseason game hosted at LSU Eunice since hosting the District B tournament during the 2006-07 season.  That year, the Bengals qualified for the NJCAA Division II National Tournament, placing fourth.
 
The Bengals enter the Region 23 Tournament as the No. 5 seed after a 16-3 record and fourth straight Louisiana Community Colleges Athletic Conference (LCCAC) regular season title.  Alona Washington (Gonzales, LA, Ascension Christian HS) leads LSUE in points with 16.7 per game, currently ranking 6th all-time in scoring.  Freshman Tahjea Smith (Texas City, TX, Texas City HS) paces the team with 9.3 rebounds per game, nearly averaging a double-double with 11.1 points per night.
 
Mississippi Gulf Coast finished the regular season 5-9 overall, 4-9 in the MACCC South, tying for 6th place in the South Division.  The Bulldogs are led by 6-2 freshman Sharisse Bridges, who is tops on the team in both points (10.7) and rebounds (5.9).
 
The two sides last met in the 2019 Region 23 playoffs, the Bulldogs taking down LSUE 81-74.  MGCCC leads the all-time series 13-20, but LSUE has won three of the last five meetings between the two.
 
Last year, LSUE won its first postseason game in more than a decade when it defeated Southwest Mississippi, 71-66, in the opening round.  The Bengals would fall to four-time Region 23 champion Jones College in the semifinal round.
 
A live stream of the game will be available on "Bengal All-Access" through LSUEBengals.net.  The winner will advance to face the winner of the No. 5 Meridian vs. No. 13 East Central.
 
NJCAA Women's Basketball Region 23 Tournament
Play-In Round
Monday, March 29
(Higher seed hosts)
No. 17 Hinds 50,  No. 16 Mississippi Delta 70 F
No. 18 Southern-Shreveport  48,  No. 15 Baton Rouge  68  F
No. 19 Northeast Mississippi 61,  No. 14 Northwest Mississippi 72 F
 
First Round
Wednesday, March 31
(Higher seed hosts)
No. 16 Mississippi Delta at No. 1 Jones, 6 p.m.
No. 15 Baton Rouge CC at No. 2 Coahoma, 6 p.m.
No. 14 Northwest Mississippi at No. 3 Itawamba, 6 p.m.
No. 13 East Central at No. 4 Meridian, 6 p.m.
No. 12 Gulf Coast at No. 5 LSU Eunice, 6 p.m.
No. 11 Copiah-Lincoln at No. 6 East Mississippi, 6 p.m.
No. 10 Holmes at No. 7 Southwest, 6 p.m.
No. 9 Delgado at No. 8 Pearl River, 6 p.m.
 
Quarterfinals
Monday, April 5 – All Games at 6PM
(Higher seed hosts)
 
Semifinals
Wednesday, April 7 – Game Times TBD
(Mississippi College | Clinton, Miss.)
 
Championship
Friday, April 9 – Game Time TBD
(Mississippi College | Clinton, Miss.)