DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman women's basketball junior trio, Kendra Cooper, Kailyn Williams and Taylor Houston combined for 46 points as the Wildcats made it two-straight after holding on to a 67-60 victory over cross-state rivals Florida A&M, Saturday, Jan. 30 in Moore Gym.
Cooper (Spring, Texas) finished with a game-best 22 points and three assists while Williams (New Orleans, La.) added 13 points, nine rebounds and eight blocked shots and Houston (Raleigh, N.C.) contributed 11 points and six boards.
B-CU started off on fire during the rival game as the Wildcats jumped out to an early 12-0 lead over the Rattlers.
It wasn't until the 3:18 mark of the first quarter when FAMU made its way on the scoreboard, after Kenya Dixon knocked down a three.
Cooper answered at the opposite end, knocking down her first trey of the day and keeping the B-CU lead at 12.
The Rattlers used an 8-4 run to close out the first stanza, as B-CU held onto its led at 19-11.
It was all Wildcats again in the second quarter as it was raining threes in Moore Gym. Senior Jasmine Knowles (Romulus, Mich.) started the storm, knocking down a trey at the 3:16 mark, followed by a shot downtown from Cooper at the 2:08 mark and it was rookie Angel Golden (Tampa, Fla.) at the 1:22 mark giving B-CU a 13 point lead (36-23).
At the half B-CU led 38-27, as the Wildcats outshot the Rattlers 58.3%-to-37.0% from the field and Cooper was already in double-figures with 13.
During the third, FAMU edged the Wildcats 16-15 as B-CU was able to hold onto a ten-point advantage heading into the final ten minutes.
A 6-3 FAMU run with under three minutes left in the contest, closed the B-CU advantage to four (61-57) after a Victoria Nguyen jumper at the 1:12 mark, followed by a Rattler timeout.
The Wildcats were able to answer the Rattler's test, as Cooper hit a two out of the 30 second break and on the defensive end “Big Kay” rejected back-to-back Olivia Antilla shot attempts helping the B-CU to its seven-point, 67-60 victory.
In addition to Cooper, Williams and Houston, Knowles added 12 points and four dimes to the Wildcat effort, while Ashanti Hunt (Washington, D.C.) pulled down a team-best ten boards.
The Rattlers were led by Khadehra Young's 20 points and six rebounds, while the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)'s third top-scored, Antilla, was held to only nine.
Bethune-Cookman returns to action on Tuesday, Feb. 2 as the Wildcats host the reigning 2015 MEAC Champions, Savannah State, in Moore Gym at 6 p.m.
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