East Panhandle News

Marcus Garrett scored 21 points for the Wildcats on Monday evening as Bethune-Cookman was defeated at home by Arkansas-Pine Bluff 77-71 in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Men's Basketball contest at Richard V. Moore Gymnasium.

Bethune-Cookman (6-12, 2-3 SWAC) led 28-26 with 6:54 remaining in the opening half after Zion Harmon's jumper just outside the paint off the pass from James Henderson Jr. However, that would be the last lead of the game for the Wildcats, as Arkansas-Pine Bluff (8-11, 4-2 SWAC) used the inside-outside trio of Ismael Plet, Brahm Harris and Kylen Milton to get things going for the Golden Lions.

With the game tied at 30-all and 4:42 showing on the clock, Harris connected on one of his game-high four (4) three-pointers on the night to put the visitors up 33-30. The lead quickly went to seven (39-32) after four points from Milton, as well as a Shaun Doss Jr. put-back in the paint.

UAPB would lead 42-40 at the half, as Bethune-Cookman's Kevin Davis and Joe French combined for three free throws down the stretch to close the period.

Despite several bursts throughout the second half from the Cats, UAPB would lead the rest of the way, including pushing the lead out to 62-51 at the 11-minute mark following Chris Greene's three-pointer from the right side. Greene ended the game with three (3) three-pointers, respectfully.

BCU shot 46.7 percent from the floor in the second half but was just 0-for-7 from three-point range. Meanwhile, the Golden Lions connected on 3-of-7 shots from beyond the arc, while outrebounding the Wildcats by a 28-13 advantage over the course of the final 20 minutes.

With BCU missing two of its key players, the Cats shot just 57.1 percent from the foul line on the night, as the Maroon and Gold connected on just 12-of-21 attempts. The Cats controlled the points in the paint 36-28, while the Golden Lions used a dominating 47-11 edge in bench scoring.

Harris, who ended the game shooting 9-of-12 at the foul line, led the Golden Lions with 20 points. Milton scored 18 points and handed out three assists off the bench, while Plet collected a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Doss rounded out the double-figure scorers for UAPB with 10 points and five assists.

BCU was charged by Garrett with 21 points and eight rebounds, followed by Davis' double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds. Dhashon Dyson and French each contributed 11 points for the Maroon and Gold.

The Wildcats return to action Saturday, Jan. 21, when making the trip west to Jackson State in Jackson, Mississippi. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. CT. 

Original source can be found here.