Final Box
Play-By-Play
DAYTONA BEACH, FLA—The South Carolina State Bulldogs suffered yet another setback dropping a tough 76-72 decision to the Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman in Mid-Eastern Athletic play Saturday.
SC State was led by senior guard/forward
Darnell Porter who poured in a game-high 27 points, while Bethune-Cookman was led by All-MEAC guard C.J. Reed with 20 points and seven assists in the victory.
A jumper by junior forward
Joe Ikhinmwin put the Bulldogs ahead three, 17-14 at the 8:59 mark in the first-half. Reed tossed in a pair of free-throws along with nailing a 3-pointer to give Bethune-Cookman their biggest lead of the half seven, 32-25 with 0:52 seconds left. A free-throw by Aric Miller closed out the first-half with Bethune-Cookman leading 33-25.
Bethune-Cookman out-rebounded South Carolina State 19-13 in the first-half. C.J. Reed led all scorers with 12 points at the half.
Kevin Dukes nailed a 3-pointer at the 10:56 mark to give the Wildcats an 11 point advantage, 48-37. A layup by senior guard
Tyvon Williams cut the lead to three, 73-70 with 0:12 seconds left in regulation.
Free-throws seemed to be the deciding factor down the stretch as BC-U shot 73% from the charity strip hitting 25-of-34 to take a 76-72 victory over the Bulldogs.
Bethune-Cookman improves to 18-11, 12-3 in the MEAC and moves one game closer to clinching the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Regular Season Championship. Meanwhile, SC State falls to 8-20 overall, 4-11 in the league.
The Wildcats had two other players in double-figures with Garrius Holloman tossing in 17 points, and Javoris Bryant chipping in 12 on the night. Despite, 20 turnovers Bethune-Cookman managed to out-rebound SC State 38-27
South Carolina State will return to action on Monday when they take on Florida A&M in an MEAC doubleheader. The women tip-off at 5:30 p.m., with the men's following at 7:30 p.m.
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