Alcorn Women Hold Back Florida A&M, 62-50

LORMAN, Miss. – Nakia Cheatham tallied 18 points while teammate Kiarra Henderson added 10 to help homestanding Alcorn to a 62-50 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Women's Basketball victory on Thursday night against Florida A&M inside the Davey L. Whitney Complex.
 
Alcorn (13-10, 10-2 SWAC) sweeps the season series against the visiting Rattlers while also running the series win streak to five consecutive, respectfully. Meanwhile, for FAMU (7-16, 6-6), the loss snaps consecutive wins for the Rattlers after grabbing victory from the likes of Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern last weekend in Tallahassee, Florida.
 
Braves Standouts
• Nakia Cheatham turned in a game-high 18 points – her fourth game on the spin reaching double-figures.
• Cheatham, a product of Clarksdale, Mississippi, also brought down a season-high matching 13 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the campaign, and her second consecutive.
• Maya Hunkin-Claytor knocked down two (2) three-pointers, extending her streak of consecutive games with at least one three-pointer to 12.
• Kiarra Henderson had five assists, giving her five in that category for a third consecutive contest.
• Lauren Nelson returned to the Braves lineup and provided 10 points off the bench, now giving her three games across the season where she's scored in double figures – and the first since pouring in 16 at Auburn (Dec. 18).
• In the win, the Braves are now 8-1 on the season at the friendly confines of the Whitney Complex.
 
How It Happened
• Florida A&M was without the services of two of their top scorers – Tahnyjia Purifoy and Aina Subirats, both of whom were out with injury.
• Alcorn had a season-low 11 turnovers as a team, while managing to hand out 20 assists – the third time on the campaign in which the Purple and Gold have tallied 20 or more assists in a single contest.
• FAMU staked an 18-14 lead after the opening stanza as the Rattlers shot 50 percent from the floor, while the homestanding Braves connected on 40 percent of their shots in reverse.
• Alcorn held the Rattlers to just eight points in the second quarter, as the Braves began the second period on a 9-0 run to take a 23-18 advantage with 5:48 remaining.
• Lauren Nelson scored six of her 10 points in the second quarter, as Alcorn also converted five FAMU turnovers into eight points as a unit.
• Alcorn would take a 29-26 lead into the locker room at the half.
• After a Breazia Robinson putback was good to tie the game at 34-all just under three minutes into the second half, the Braves used a Hunkin-Claytor three-pointer to spark an 11-4 run and post a 45-38 edge just before the end of the period, following a pair of Dalayja Hurt-Floyd free throws.
• The Purple and Gold outscored the Rattlers 32-22 in the paint on the night, despite being outrebounded by the visitors, 40-39.
• In terms of fastbreak points, the Braves held a commanding 19-7 edge in the contest.
• The Rattlers were limited to just two field goals across the final 10 minutes, as Alcorn connected on 8 of 17 from the floor, respectfully.
 
Up Next
Alcorn welcomes a red-hot Bethune-Cookman to the Davey L. Whitney Complex after the Wildcats took down Jackson State 58-50 – the first win in program history against the Tigers of JSU, in the first leg of their "Magnolia State" swing. The game is set to tipoff Saturday, Feb. 14, at 1 p.m.
 
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