CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern was unable to hold off the hot hand of Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday evening in the Buc Dome as the Buccaneers fell to the Wildcats, 81-41.

The Bucs (0-4) fell behind early and were unable to mount a sustained rally against visiting BCU (4-0) in CSU's first action in 11 days. CSU had been off since their previous contest back on November 15 at North Carolina.

Sharita Godfrey paced the Bucs' scoring with 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting from the floor and added a team-high six rebounds in the non-conference matchup. Sha'Mya Leigh added five points in the starting effort, while Ahlea Myers and Asia Smith both recorded five points off the bench in the loss.

Daniella Hatcher paced the Wildcats in the contest with a game-high 15 points, while Ashlie Howell (12) and Tania White (12) were also in double-digits in the scoring column for the guests. Overall, Bethune-Cookman was 15-of-27 from deep in the contest in pulling away for their fourth consecutive win.
 
First Quarter – Bethune-Cookman 24, Charleston Southern 9
The Wildcats jumped out to the early 8-2 lead behind a pair of Hatcher layups, while Armani Walker put in a layup at the 6:32 mark to put the margin at six. Ahlea Myers connected on a three-pointer to end the BCU stretch, but the Wildcats responded with a 10-2 run capped by a Hatcher three-pointer to go up 18-7 with 1:11 to play in the quarter as BCU coasted to the 24-9 early lead.

Second Quarter – Bethune-Cookman 43, Charleston Southern 20
BCU went on an 8-2 run to start the second quarter as the Wildcats lead hit 20 points on Ciara Thompson's three-pointer at the 7:55 mark as CSU trailed 32-12 early in the quarter. Asia Smith, Kelsie Ruff, and Sha'Mya Leigh all put in baskets for the Bucs throughout the period, before Tori Gittens hit a pair of late free throws to put the margin at 43-20 heading into the break.

Third Quarter – Bethune-Cookman 59, Charleston Southern 30
Sharita Godfrey had the opening basket in the second half as the sophomore wing drilled a three-pointer from the top of the key to put the Bucs on the board. Smith put together a three-point play in the quarter to contribute to the Bucs' scoring, but CSU was unable to make a dent in the BCU lead as the Wildcats went up 29 at the end of the frame.

Fourth Quarter – Bethune-Cookman 81, Charleston Southern 41
Tania White had the hot hand for the Wildcats as she connected on her first four three-point attempts of the quarter as BCU went ahead 71-34 with 7:24 to play. Tyra Wright, Leigh, and Maya Richards chipped in CSU's final points of the contest as the two teams closed out the game in favor of the visiting team.

Inside the Numbers

• CSU was 16-of-44 (36.4%) from the floor, 2-of-12 (16.7%) from the three-point line, and 7-of-13 (53.8%) from the free throw line.
• Conversely, BCU was 32-of-61 (52.5%) from the floor, 15-of-27 (55.6%) from the three-point line, and 2-of-6 (33.3%) from the free throw line.
• Bethune-Cookman utilized nine points off turnovers in the first quarter in building their early 15-point advantage.
• The Wildcats also held the 13-2 advantage in second-chance points and 47-17 edge in bench points.
• CSU and the Wildcats both pounded the paint inside with BCU holding the slight edge in scoring in the lane with 28-22.

News & Notes

• Sharita Godfrey, Carmella Walker, Sha'Mya Leigh, and Tyra Wright continued their starting streak as the quartet have started each of the four games this year.
• Godfrey was in double-digits for the third consecutive game with 11 points against the Wildcats.
• Godfrey posted her fourth consecutive game with a three-pointer to start the year.
• The Bucs fell to 0-2 against the MEAC this season following their loss to Bethune-Cookman
• CSU falls to 5-2 all-time against BCU with the loss.
• The Bucs fall to 0-2 at home in 2019-20.

Up Next
Charleston Southern is back in action after Thanksgiving as the Buccaneers host North Dakota at the Buc Dome on Saturday, November 30. Tipoff between the Bucs and the Fighting Hawks is set for 3 p.m.