GRAMBLING, La. - The Wildcats look to close out the regular season strong as they prepare for an important road stretch against Grambling State and Southern.
What: Game Twenty-Nine
Who: Bethune-Cookman (6-22, 4-11) at Grambling State (10-17, 7-7)
When: Thursday, Feb. 26, at 8:30 p.m. ET
Where: Grambling, La. – Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center
Watch: SWAC TV
Live Stats: Click here
What: Game Thirty
Who: Bethune-Cookman at Southern (14-11, 10-4)
When: Saturday, Feb. 28, at 12:00 p.m. ET
Where: Baton Rouge, La. – F.G. Clark Activity Center
Watch: SWAC TV
Live Stats: Click here
1st Quarter
The first period was tightly contested, with both teams struggling to generate an offensive rhythm.
Bethune-Cookman dominated defensively, holding Alabama A&M to just 1-of-12 from the field. But the Wildcats shot just 28.6% themselves and only made two of their four free-throw attempts.
B-CU held a narrow 11-8 edge going into the second
.
2nd Quarter
In the second quarter, it was the Bulldogs who began to dominate defensively, holding the Wildcats to 2-of-12 shooting.
Alabama A&M grabbed seven offensive rebounds in the quarter, helping them create six more shot attempts than B-CU.
The result was a 13-8 edge in the period and a two-point halftime lead.
Aniya Palmer led all scorers with six points, while
Sanai Tyler and
Shomari Phillips led the Wildcats with four.
3rd Quarter
The third saw the game continue to stay within a couple of possessions.
The Wildcats shot 50% in the quarter but did so on just eight shot attempts. B-CU was finally able to get going from beyond the arc, shooting 2-for-3 on three-pointers in the frame.
The Bulldogs shot 36.4% but were able to get to the free-throw line eight times, making six.
AAMU held a narrow four-point advantage heading into the fourth.
4th Quarter
The Bulldogs once again held an edge in shot attempts in the fourth 11-8 and shot 54.5% overall.
AAMU was solid from the free-throw line to finish off the win, shooting 80% on 10 attempts. They also out-rebounded the Cats nine to four.
Grambling State
Grambling is 7-7 overall in the SWAC but have won three of its last four games. Most recently, the Tigers defeated Mississippi Valley State by 25 points at home. However, in conference play, GSU is just 4-3 in its home arena.
The Tigers' leading scorer is Shaniah Nunn, who is averaging 14.8 points in league play, good for fourth in the conference. The senior forward has recorded eight double-doubles this season and finished one rebound short of her ninth last time out.
GSU is the top team in the SWAC at grabbing offensive boards, averaging just under 16 a game. They have recorded 20+ offensive rebounds in eight games this season, including 21 in their win over the Delta Devils.
Southern
The Jaguars currently sit fourth in the SWAC with a 10-4 record. They have won three games in a row after losing the previous three straight. In Southern's last game, they defeated Grambling 59-45 in Baton Rouge, improving their home record to 7-2.
The leading scorer for Southern is DeMya Porter. The sophomore forward is scoring 10.2 points per game. She narrowly missed out on a double-double in her last game, finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds. Against the Wildcats in Daytona Beach, Porter managed 17 points, nine rebounds, and a season-high six steals.
Southern deploys the second ranked defense in the conference, allowing 52.6 points per game. They rank first in the league in steals and third in blocks. The Jaguars are also excellent at taking care of the basketball, sitting first in the SWAC in turnovers.
Bethune-Cookman is 3-8 all-time against Grambling but are 2-2 on the road in the series.
The Wildcats are 3-12 against the Jaguars and are currently on a nine-game losing streak in the series.
Versus the Bulldogs, the Wildcats are just 3-9 all-time.
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