DeLAND, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman women's basketball junior Kendra Cooper topped her career-best, finishing with 31 points on Monday afternoon, as the Wildcats took down the Georgia Southern Eagles, 65-49 to wrap-up the 2015 Stetson Hatters Classic at The Edmunds Center.
Back-to-back three balls from Cooper, a native of Spring, Texas, and Taylor Houston (Raleigh, N.C.) opened the contest, as the Wildcats (6-6) pulled ahead early-on, 6-2.
At the media timeout, with 6:06 left in the first quarter, all 12 of the B-CU points came from long range as the Wildcats held a 12-4 lead.
Closing the first quarter, the Wildcats' advantage stood at eight (20-12), while Cooper's 12 points matched the Eagles' entire effort.
Momentum stayed in favor of B-CU during the second stanza as the Wildcats saw an 11-point lead at the 8:44 mark after a Cooper three-ball stretched the Cats lead at 23-12.
B-CU took a 36-23 advantage into the locker room at the half.
Cooper opened the contest on fire from deep, after connecting on 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, netting 18 first half points, while the Wildcats shot 9-for-16 (56.3%) from downtown as a team in the first half.
At the third quarter media timeout, with 4:54 showing on the clock, B-CU was able to hold onto a 38-27 lead despite a slow start – only scoring two points compared to the Eagles (3-6) four after the break.
The lead swelled to 16 at the 2:21 mark, after B-CU pulled ahead, 45-30 on a Cooper foul shot.
Bethune-Cookman held Georgia Southern to just 1-for-6 shooting from the field to close the third quarter, and despite an even 11-of-11 performance from both teams, B-CU held onto a comfortable 45-31 advantage.
An 18-15 scoring advantage for the Wildcats closed the final stanza as B-CU grabbed the 65-49 victory.
In addition to Cooper's 31-point outburst, Houston added 14 points and Jasmine Knowles (Romulus, Mich.) recorded eight points, seven boards and dished out six dimes.
After the holiday break, the Wildcats return to the hardwood Tuesday, Dec. 29, as B-CU heads south to participate in the Florida Atlantic Tournament in Boca Raton, Florida. The Wildcats open the two-day tournament against the host FAU Owls at 5 p.m.
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