ITTA BENA, Miss. – For the first time during the 2023-24 season, Bethune-Cookman Women's Basketball takes to the road for a pair of Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) contests, as the Wildcats visit Mississippi Valley State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff in a league double feature beginning this weekend.
 
What: Game Seventeen
Who: Bethune-Cookman (10-6, 1-2) at Mississippi Valley State (2-15, 1-3)
When: Saturday, Jan. 20, at 4 p.m. CT
Where: Itta Bena, Miss. – R.W. Harrison HPER Complex (5,000)
 
Watch: Valley State Sports Network
Listen: Click Here
Attend: Online Ticket Sales
Live Stats: Click Here
 
What: Game Eighteen
Who: Bethune-Cookman at Arkansas-Pine Bluff
When: Monday, Jan. 22, at 5:30 p.m. CT
Where: Pine Bluff, Ark. – H.O. Clemmons Arena (4,100)
 
Watch: UAPB Sports Network
Attend: Online Ticket Sales
Live Stats: Click Here
 
IN THE RANKINGS
▪ Bethune-Cookman is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
▪ Mississippi Valley State is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
▪ Arkansas-Pine Bluff is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
Keep up with everything Bethune-Cookman Women's Basketball this season by following the Wildcats social media platforms. You can follow @BCU_WBB on Instagram and @BCUWBB on Twitter.
 
NEWS & NOTES
▪ For the third consecutive year, this will be the only meeting between BCU and Mississippi Valley State on the season.
▪ The Wildcats come into the weekend swing having dropped three of their last five games, but two of those losses by a combined six (6) points to opponents from Grambling State and Southern (La.), respectfully.
▪ BCU has never defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff at H.O. Clemmons Arena, with Monday night set to serve as just the second meeting between the two sides in Arkansas.
▪ The Maroon and Gold are second in the SWAC in defense, allowing opponents to score just 59.7 points per game. Meanwhile, the team is third in offense with an average of 69.8 points scored per contest.
▪ The Cats are just eighth in the league in three-point field goals made, as the team has connected on just 63 across the first sixteen games of the campaign.
▪ Chanel Wilson is tied for sixth in the league in scoring, with the Powder Springs, Georgia native turning in an average of 12.8 points per game on 205 points total for the season.
▪ In just her first year with the program, junior forward Chanelle McDonald is currently tied for 13th in the league in scoring with 10.7 points per game.
▪ Kayla Clark is topping the Wildcats in rebounding with 102 under her belt, as the Miami native brings down an average of 7.8 boards per game. Of those 102 rebounds, 44 of those have come on the offensive glass.
▪ It's Kerrighan Dunn that sits second on the team with 17 three-pointers, turning in 9.0 points per game and 4.4 rebounds per contest. She also has 38 assists handed out across the season.
▪ Clark also tops the team with 14 blocked shots, followed by O'Mariyah Tucker with nine.
▪ Dunn is currently third in the SWAC for steals with 39 to her credit.
 
RECAPPING BCU'S LAST GAME (vs. Southern University)
A late Chanel Wilson three missed the mark as Southern University held on for a 71-66 win inside Richard V. Moore Gymnasium. A tight first frame saw Aniya Gourdine's three-ball put Southern in front 12-7 just after the contest's first media timeout.
 
Bethune-Cookman quickly answered, as Diamoni Dorsey's floater capped off an 8-0 B-CU run to give the Wildcats a 17-15 lead heading into the second. The Jaguars quickly returned the favor with an 10-0 run of their own entering the second quarter to move back on top 25-17. The Wildcats struggled from deep to start the game, missing seven straight as Southern maintained a 34-22 lead with three minutes to half.
 
Chanel Wilson took the Wildcats into the break on the team's first three of the game to cut the deficit to just six at halftime. The Cats immediately tied things up after the break with six straight and a D'Shantae Edwards and-one that made it 35-35.
 
BCU finally found an offensive stroke after the break rattling off a 22-5 run en route to a 46-39 lead. Sothern followed with another 11-2 run of its own to enter the fourth tied at 50 all. BCU outscored Southern, 12-4, through the first five minutes of the fourth thanks to buckets from Kayla Clark, Edwards, and Wilson. Southern continued the pressure, as free throws and a three from Aleighyah Fontenot made it a three-point game again with four minutes to play.
 
Southern finally re-took the lead at 63-62 with two minutes remaining on a bucket from Genovea Johnson, but Wilson quickly answered with a three to put B-CU up again, 65-63. From there, Southern put three straight baskets in to take a 69-65 lead after forcing a B-CU miss and turnover. BCU had a shot to tie with under ten to play, but Wilson's three was off the mark as Southern held on for the 71-66 win.
 
BCU VS. MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE SERIES
▪ In what is a relatively short series between the two schools, Bethune-Cookman leads 2-0 all-time against Mississippi Valley State.
▪ The Wildcats and Delta Devils have played just once each season since BCU joined the SWAC for the beginning of the 2021-22 campaign.
▪ BCU took the series opener by a count of 78-74 in Itta Bena back on Jan. 15, 2022.
▪ The Maroon and Gold won last year's only meeting between the sides at Moore Gym courtesy a 70-55 count.
 
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE
▪ Despite a 2-15 overall record, Mississippi Valley State has lost a handful of games by 10 points or fewer on the year. The Delta Devils enter the weekend sporting a 1-3 record in the SWAC.
▪ The Delta Devils have collected wins from McNeese State and Texas Southern this season, but suffered tough losses to Alabama State, Lipscomb and Milwaukee all by a combined 18 points across the three defeats.
▪ Last weekend, MVSU registered an even 1-1 record in two league road games at Prairie View A&M (L, 83-69) and Texas Southern (W, 70-69), respectively.
▪ Mississippi Valley enters the weekend averaging 52.8 points per game, while the Delta Devils shoot 31.7 percent from the floor.
▪ The Delta Devils are handing out 9.8 assists per contest, in addition to forcing 17.9 turnovers per game on defense.
▪ The points for Mississippi Valley are scored primarily through the services of Sh'Diamond McKnight who is averaging 14.2 points per game. Behind her is Jaylia Reed with a 7.9 points per game average across the campaign.
▪ Reed has connected on a team-high 24 three-pointers this season, with McKNight close behind on 22.
▪ Lizzie Walker is pulling down a team-high 4.6 rebounds per contest, followed directly by Amberly Brown (4.1 rpg).
▪ Brown is the team leader in blocks with 25, while McKnight supplies the steals with 50 to her credit.
 
BCU VS. ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF SERIES
▪ Bethune-Cookman and Arkansas-Pine Bluff have played each other just twice all-time, with the teams splitting the series to date.
▪ Both meetings between the two sides have occurred since BCU joined the SWAC.
▪ The home teams have held court each time, as BCU won last year's only meeting between the teams courtesy a 63-61 scoreline at Moore Gym.
▪ UAPB took the series opener with a 73-56 result in Pine Bluff, Arkansas on Jan. 17, 2022.
 
SCOUTING ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF
▪ With arguably one of the most dynamic players in the SWAC on its roster, Arkansas-Pine Bluff comes into the weekend sporting a 7-9 overall record, and a 2-1 mark in the SWAC.
▪ The Golden Lions first play Florida A&M on Saturday, with game time moved up an hour due to inclement weather.
▪ UAPB is outscoring opponents by 4.3 points per game with the Golden Lions averaging 77.6 points per contest.
▪ The Golden Lions are shooting 42.5 percent from the field, using a 28.7 percent clip from beyond the arc. They are adding a 63.8 percent touch from the foul line as a team.
▪ UAPB hands out an average of 17.3 assists per game and is turning opponents over at a rate of 19.5 times per game – going on to score 20.2 points per contest off those turnovers, respectfully.
▪ Leading the league in scoring is Zaay Green with 17.5 points per game, as she shoots at a 43.4 percent touch from the floor.
▪ Green is second on the team with a 28.3 percent clip shooting from three-point range, while it's teammate Coriah Beck leading the SWAC with 2.1 three-pointers drained per contest.
▪ Also leading the team in rebounding is Green with seven per game, followed by Maori Davenport with 6.1 boards per contest, including a team-high 18 blocked shots.
▪ The assists for the Golden Lions are provided by Green with 97, as teammate Kalia Walker has 40 assists and 14 steals.
 
UP NEXT
Upon returning from the MVSU/UAPB swing, Bethune-Cookman plays host to a pair of SWAC opponents from the "Magnolia State" in the form of Jackson State (January 27) and Alcorn State (January 29), respectively.
 
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