BATON ROUGE, La. – Bethune-Cookman Women's Basketball travels to Louisiana for a pair of Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) games at Southern University and Grambling State, as the Wildcats conclude their eight-game road swing dating back to the beginning of December. The matchup against Southern (La.) will be the Wildcats' first in the new league format with a single game on Thursday evening without a men's game afterwards as part of a traditional doubleheader.
 

What: Game Fourteen
Who: Bethune-Cookman (3-10, 0-1) at Southern University (3-12, 1-1)
When: Thursday, Jan. 9, at 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Baton Rouge, La. – F.G. Clark Activity Center (7,500)
 
Watch: Jaguar Sports Network
Live Stats: Click Here
 
What: Game Fifteen
Who: Bethune-Cookman at Grambling State
When: Saturday, Jan. 11, at 3 p.m. ET
Where: Grambling, La. – Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center (7,600)
 
Watch: GSU Athletics YouTube
Attend: Online Ticket Sales
Live Stats: Click Here
 
IN THE RANKINGS
▪ Bethune-Cookman is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
▪ Southern (La.) is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
▪ Grambling State is not ranked in this week's Associated Press Top 25
 

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▪ Bethune-Cookman junior forward Asianae Nicholson continues to lead the SWAC in rebounding with an average of 10.2 boards per contest. The Ohio native is also ranked 10th in the league in scoring with an average of 11 points per game.
▪ Nicholson has amassed a team-leading eight double-digit rebounding efforts across the campaign.
▪ Bethune-Cookman is third in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (0.69).
▪ The Wildcats have the league's best opponent field goal percentage in holding the opposition to shooting just 39.7 percent from the floor.
▪ Teammates Kayla White (77.8 percent) and Kariana Woods (75.0 percent) are fifth and sixth in the league, respectfully, in free throw percentage.
▪ In her last game away to Florida A&M, junior guard Daimoni Dorsey turned in a perfect 8-for-8 performance at the free throw line, allowing her a new career-high in that department. Her 33 minutes played was a new season high.
▪ Kayla White returned to the B-CU lineup in the Cats' last contest after missing the previous three games against Bradley, South Alabama and Campbell.
▪ Junior guard Karianna Woods leads the Wildcats in assists (27), and she has tallied three games of at least three assists or more on the season.
▪ The game against Southern (La.) will be Bethune-Cookman's 56th as a member of the SWAC.
▪ Senior guard Shomari Phillips has connected on multiple three-point baskets in five contests this season, including a 2-for-6 effort at Campbell on December 30.
 

RECAPPING B-CU'S LAST GAME (at Florida A&M)
Missed free throws and turnovers proved costly as Bethune-Cookman dropped a 62-54 decision away to in-state foe Florida A&M in the SWAC opener for both teams in front of 2,312 fans inside Al Lawson Center in Tallahassee.
 
Florida A&M led wire-to-wire as the homestanding Rattlers opened up a 17-8 lead after the first quarter of play. FAMU's Cheyenne McEvans, the SWAC's leading scorer, produced seven of her game-high 23 points in the opening period, as she almost outscored Bethune-Cookman (3-10, 0-1 SWAC) by herself. The Rattlers held the Wildcats to just eight points in the quarter, limiting the visitors to 16.7 percent shooting from the field – including a 0-for-3 effort from three-point range. FAMU countered shooting at a 50 percent clip from the floor, using 13 points off 10 first quarter Bethune-Cookman miscues. Leading the scoring for the Cats was junior guard Daimoni Dorsey with four points – all of them coming at the foul line.
 
With B-CU trailing 23-10 with 6:35 remaining in the half, the Cats went on a 10-0 run, beginning with a Mya Johnson tip-in off the Dorsey miss. Having missed the last three contests, senior Kayla White returned to the B-CU lineup and supplied a fast break layup, followed by a Janessa Kelley three-pointer to trim the Wildcats deficit at 23-20 with 2:58 remaining. However, FAMU would respond as Sydney Hendrix kicked off a 7-1 run to close half, scoring five points in the run – added a basket off a Wildcats turnover by McEvans. In all, the Cats committed 19 first half turnovers and were outscored 22-10 in the paint.
 
B-CU began the fourth quarter on a 9-2 run thanks in large part to freshman guard Jordan Brooks, as she delivered four points during a three-minute stretch that saw the visitors claw back to within 45-44. Also clutch for the Cats was White with four points, as well as the SWAC's leading rebounder Asianae Nicholson totaling three points in the run. Once again, FAMU answered with a run to extend the lead, 50-44 with a pair of McEvans free throws, before Woods responded with two of her own to put the B-CU deficit at 50-48 with 2:05 remaining in the contest. Turnovers would once again prove costly for the Wildcats, leading to a 6-0 FAMU run to extend the lead back out to eight. B-CU would get no closer than within a five-point margin down the stretch, as FAMU knocked down free throws and forced B-CU into three additional turnovers to close the league win at home.
 
FAMU forced Bethune-Cookman into 35 turnovers – the most for the Wildcats since committing 35 against Hampton when both teams were members of the MEAC back on Feb. 18, 2017. Additionally, the Rattlers outscored the Cats 44-26 in the paint and shot 42.4 percent from the field. The Rattlers were led by McEvans with 23 points and six assists, as teammate Sabou Gueye finished with 12 points, three assists and three steals. Bethune-Cookman also forced the Rattlers into 35 turnovers of their own, but the Cats shot just 16 of 25 at the foul line on the day. Kelley had both of B-CU's three-pointers in the contest to finish as the lone player in double figures with 10 points. White registered nine points in her return, and Dorsey tallied eight (all from the free throw line). Kayla Clark posted nine rebounds and five steals.
 

BCU VS. SOUTHERN SERIES
▪ Southern University leads the series against Bethune-Cookman by a sizeable 9-3 advantage dating back to 1983.
▪ The Jaguars have won the last six outings between the two sides, including a thrilling 69-65 overtime decision last year in Baton Rouge.
▪ Bethune-Cookman's last win over the Jaguars came via a 68-56 score in Daytona Beach on December 13, 2017.
▪ The Cats have never defeated the Jaguars in a SWAC contest.
▪ B-CU's only win in Baton Rouge was an 80-68 decision on January 15, 1983 – the first-ever meeting between the teams.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHERN (La.)
▪ Southern University holds a record of 3-12 overall, while also sporting an even 1-1 record in SWAC play.
▪ The Jaguars defeated Prairie View A&M to open their SWAC account, while then falling to Texas Southern on the road in their last outing.
▪ Southern is 2-0 at home this season with wins coming against Southern University at New Orleans and Jarvis Christian, respectfully.
▪ As a team, Southern is scoring an average of 56.8 points per game, while shooting at a 35.8 percent clip from the floor. From three-point range, the Jaguars are shooting 25.9 percent.
▪ The Jaguars lead the league with an average of just 15.1 turnovers per game committed.
▪ Senior guard Aniya Gourdine tops the Jaguars and is ranked 12th in the league in scoring with an average of 10.5 points per game. She also shoots at a 37.7 percent clip from the field, adding a 26.8 percent touch from three-point range.
▪ Jocelyn Tate is the team's leading rebounder with 51 (4.8 per game), while also leading the squad with 25 steals and a team second-most seven blocked shots.
▪ Former Bethune-Cookman guard D'Shantae Edwards has produced 84 points (6.0 per game) and 17 assists with a team second-highest 23 steals.
 
BCU VS. GRAMBLING STATE SERIES
▪ Grambling State leads the all-time series against Bethune-Cookman by a count of 6-2, with all but two of those games occurring since the Wildcats joined the SWAC for the 2021-22 season.
▪ GSU has won the last three meetings between the teams, a stretch that includes a sweep of last year's meetings.
▪ In the eight-game series, six of the contests have been decided by 10 points or less, including both games last season.
▪ B-CU's last win over GSU occurred on Jan. 7, 2023, in Louisiana courtesy a 63-46 tilt.
▪ The Wildcats won the first ever meeting between the sides by an 80-52 score line back on Dec. 15, 2003, inside Moore Gymnasium.
 
SCOUTING GRAMBLING STATE
▪ Due to impending winter weather in the Northern Louisiana area, Grambling State's game against Florida A&M, originally scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 9, has been postponed to Monday, Jan. 13.
▪ Grambling is 4-9 overall with a 1-1 record in SWAC play. The Tigers enter the weekend having won two of their last three games, including a 67-44 decision away to Prairie View A&M last weekend.
▪ GSU is 2-0 at home with wins against Centenary (La.) and Arkansas Baptist, respectively.
▪ Grambling is allowing an average of 72.1 points per game from opponents, while scoring at a 70.1 points per game mark of its own. That ranks the Tigers atop the SWAC in that department.
▪ In the scoring column, Kahia Warmsley leads the bunch with 150 points (11.5 per game), allowing her to rank eighth in the SWAC in that category.
▪ Both Alyssa Phillip (7.4 rpg) and Lydia Freeman (6.3 rpg) rank in the top 10 of the conference for rebounds.
▪ Senior guard Halima Salat is the team's three-point threat with 18 under her belt, followed by Warmsley with 10 three-pointers of her own.
▪ Freeman shoots at a team-high 46.5 percent mark from the field, followed by Phillip carrying a 41.3 percent mark.
▪ The duo of Florida native Douthshine Prien (39 assists) and Sharonica Hartsfield (32 assists) setup the Tigers offense.
 

After spending six weeks on the road, Bethune-Cookman returns to the friendly confines of Richard V. Moore Gymnasium for the SWAC home-opening game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Thursday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m.
 
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