DAYTONA BEACH, Fla—Five Bulldogs scored in double-figures but it wasn't enough as South Carolina State dropped another heartbreaking overtime loss to Bethune-Cookman, 98-95, Saturday (March. 2
nd) at Moore Gymnasium.
"We have been in so many close games this year! This one hurts the worse. If we would have hit our free-throws down the stretch we would have won the game," said Bulldog head coach
Murray Garvin.
South Carolina State shot 57.9% (11-of-19) from the charity stripe, while BC-U converted 24-of-31 (77.4%) from the free-throw line. Despite the loss, the Bulldogs defense forced the Wildcats to a game-high 19 turnovers while leading 54-50 for points in the paint and 13-6 on second chance points.
Preseason All-MEAC select
Damani Applewhite reached a milestone in his career, as he officially became a member of the 1000 career point club. Entering the game Applewhite needed just 19 points to eclipse the mark he finished with 20-points, seven rebounds and five assist.
Junior forward
Ian Kinard led all Bulldogs with a career-high 22 points and 8 rebounds. Teammates
Janai Raynor-Powell finished with 17, junior guard
Jahmari Etienne 16 points, five assist and sophomore guard
Rayshawn Neal 14 in the loss.
Bethune-Cookman was led by Malik Maitland 26 points alongside senior forward/center Cletrell Pope with 20 points and 12 rebounds in the win.
Garvin stated, "Moore gymnasium is a tough place to play and our guys fought hard out there and competed. There is a breakthrough coming I trust and believe that. We need all of our fans to come out Thursday (March 7
th ) to cheer our guys on against Savannah State in the regular season finale, before we head to the MEAC Tournament in Norfolk, VA."
Next up the South Carolina State will play their regular season finale at home versus Savannah State Thursday (March. 7
th) at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m.
For more information on South Carolina State Athletics visit
www.scsuathletics.com or call the Office of Athletic Media Relations at (803) 536-7060.
