At 3-6, the Baldiwnsville boys basketball team nearly pulled off the big win it needed to zoom back into playoff contention.

The Bees visited Corcoran Thursday night and outplayed the Cougars for long stretches of the game, but one bad quarter proved costly in a 69-66 defeat.

In their first meeting Dec. 9, Corcoran had won 79-66, overcoming Willie Hython’s 35 points by getting 32 points from sophomore Henry Sullivan and 20 from senior Shakem Buckmon.

The rematch was a close encounter until the second quarter, when the Bees’ defense got overwhelmed. Corcoran outscored them 24-11 in that frame and were up 39-24 at the break.

B’ville didn’t surrender, though, chipping away at that deficit throughout the second half and nearly catching up. Hython had much to do with that, pouring in 26 points, while Jayson Brower had a career-high 13 points and Kevin Drain contributed 12 points.

Corcoran held on, though, as Sullivan again proved potent, earning 27 points. Buckmon only had eight points, but forward Torrence Commodore stepped up for 16 points.

Now the Bees have to go face another city power, defending Class AA champion Henninger, on Tuesday before returning home to face Liverpool next Thursday night.