TALLAHASSEE, Fl. — The Florida A&M University women's basketball team trailed by four at the break, but could not slow down a hot-shooting Bethune-Cookman squad in the second half as the Lady Rattlers fell, 78-57, in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) game on Saturday afternoon at the Al Lawson Center.
Florida A&M (4-16 overall, 2-7 MEAC) trailed, 23-16, after one period and 35-31 at the break. Bethune-Cookman (14-5, 7-1) shot nearly 53 percent in the third quarter and closed out the game shooting 62.5 percent from the floor in the final period to earn the conference win.
Alaina Rice led Florida A&M with 13 points, seven rebounds, one assist and one steal. Kayla Massop tallied 11 points, seven boards, three blocks and one assist, while Shalaunda Burney-Robinson added eight points, four boards and two assists.
Kiana Williams paced Bethune-Cookman with a game-high 22 points, on 7-of-9 shooting, along with seven assists, four steals and two rebounds. Danielle Hatcher registered 14 points, three boards and one steal, while Amaya Scott recorded 11 points and three rebounds.
How It Happened
Bethune-Cookman scored the first six points of the game, but Florida A&M rallied and trailed, 23-16, after one quarter.
The Lady Rattlers closed the deficit to 25-23 after a pair of free throws by Kayla Massop with 7:07 remaining in the second period and FAMU trailed, 27-26, as Regan Anderson completed a three-point play with 6:12 left.
Florida A&M took a 28-27 lead after a Massop layup with just over five minutes remaining in the half, but the Lady Wildcats closed out the period on an 8-3 run to take a 35-31 lead into the break.
Bethune-Cookman opened the third quarter on a 12-2 run, capped by a Kiana Williams layup with 6:59 left in the period and took a 58-44 advantage into the final quarter.
The Lady Wildcats extended the margin to 70-46 after a Williams bucket with 5:35 remaining and the Lady Rattlers could not answer as Florida A&M dropped the home contest.
Inside the Numbers
> Florida A&M shot 35.8 percent (19-of-56) from the floor and 75.0 percent (15-of-20) from the charity stripe
> Bethune-Cookman was 31-of-62 (50.0 percent) from the field and 16-of-20 (80.0 percent) from the foul line
> FAMU registered 40 rebounds, with 26 coming on the defensive end
> BCU pulled down 29 rebounds, including 22 on the defensive glass
> The Lady Rattlers recorded 28 points in the paint, 16 bench points, 16 second-chance point, two points off six BCU turnovers and two fastbreak points
> The Lady Wildcats finished with 52 points in the paint, 28 points off 22 FAMU turnovers, 23 bench points, 12 second-chance points and eight fastbreak points
Up Next
Florida A&M will return to action on Feb. 8 against Howard at the Al Lawson Center. Tip-off against the Bison is set for 2 p.m. and will be for SGA Appreciation day.
