A jump shot with 0:05 remaining ruined the Robert Lewis Middle School Bulldogs’ chances at a No. 1 seed in the district tournament in a 41-39 loss to McComb Monday night.

A three-pointer by Donald Perry with 2:15 remaining gave the Bulldogs a 39-33 lead, but they were unable to hold off the size and speed of McComb down the stretch in a disappointing loss.

“Man to man we were outgunned,” Robert Lewis coach Cleveland Watts said. “But this team never quits.”

The back-and-forth affair saw each team appear to take the game in control at various points throughout the game.

“Both teams are equally matched,” Watts said. “Each ball club is capable of scoring 10, 12 points in a row, and both of them did.”

The Bulldogs (10-5) took an 18-13 lead midway through the third quarter before McComb went on a 6-0 run to close out the half with a 19-18 lead.

The Robert Lewis scoring drought continued in the third, as McComb pushed its lead to as much as 28-20 before the Bulldogs went on a 9-0 run of their own to take the lead back on a Perry jumper with five minutes remaining in the game.

Raymond Williams led the Bulldogs with 17 points on the night, and Javon Washington scored nine.

While Robert Lewis will now enter the district tournament in two weeks as the No. 2 seed, they will host the tournament, and with two games remaining Watts said they would have ample opportunity to work out the kinks.

“We’re still in it,” he said. “We know we can play with (McComb). We’re going to have to play better defense, especially man-to-man. We’ll have to work on controlling the ball, and controlling the tempo of the game.”

The Bulldogs will travel to face Brookhaven Thursday.