Hunkin-Claytor Sets Single-Season Record

LORMAN, Miss. – Maya Hunkin-Claytor registered a team-high 18 points and set the new Alcorn single-season record for three-pointers made, as the Braves dropped a 66-61 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Women's Basketball contest to Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Thursday evening inside Davey L. Whitney Complex. The game was the regular season finale for both teams, as Alcorn had already solidified the No. 2 seed for the SWAC Basketball Tournament.
 
Alcorn (17-12, 14-4) was chasing history to become just the second team in Braves Women's Basketball history to turn in a 15-win SWAC season. However, the 14 league wins matches the 2004-05 Braves squad. As for Arkansas-Pine Bluff (13-15, 10-8), the Golden Lions are now in a three-way tie for fifth place, with a tie-break deciding the seeding for the Golden Lions, Grambling State and Jackson State, respectively.
 
Braves Standouts
• The game was "Senior Appreciation Night", as Alcorn paid tribute to seniors Ja'Sharreah Hunt and Arene Iyekekpolor after the game.
• Also honored after the game was Nakia Cheatham for scoring her 1,000th Alcorn point last week in Texas.
• Maya Hunkin-Claytor paced the Braves with 18 points, knocking down a game-high six (6) three-pointers.
• Kiarra Henderson finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double, finishing the night 7 of 11 shooting from the field.
• Nakia Cheatham contributed 15 points and eight rebounds in her final game inside Davey L. Whitney Complex.
• Iyekekpolor knocked down a three-pointer in the game to finish 1-for-2 from long range.
 
How It Happened
• Arkansas-Pine Bluff led for a majority of the game and built a double-digit advantage late in the fourth quarter before Alcorn mounted a late rally, outscoring the Golden Lions 21–16 in the final period.
• Alcorn outrebounded Arkansas-Pine Bluff 42–34 and closed the gap late with a strong fourth-quarter surge.
• The Braves trimmed the deficit but could not overcome the early gap.
• UAPB jumped ahead early, taking an 18–13 lead after the first quarter and extending the margin to 33–25 at halftime behind balanced scoring and strong rebounding in the paint.
• Indiya Bowen scored a game-high 26 points, hitting 5 of 11 from three-point range and adding four assists and four steals to her stat line.
• UAPB's Jailah Pelly added 15 points, including several transition baskets off turnovers.
• The visitors never used a substitution in the second half.
• UAPB was also powered by Khaniah Gardner who recorded a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds, finishing a perfect 6-for-6 shooting from the floor on the night.
• The Golden Lions pushed their lead to 13 points midway through the fourth quarter – the largest lead by the guests on the night.
• UAPB created separation with a scoring burst spanning the first half and early second half, highlighted by Bowen's perimeter shooting and transition points generated off turnovers.
• As a team, the Braves shot 41.3 percent from the field, while UAPB shot 20 free throws compared to the Braves' 10.
 
Up Next
Alcorn awaits its opening opponent for next week's Pepsi Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament, as the Braves locked up the No. 2 seed and will play Wednesday, March 11, at 6:30 p.m. ET.
 
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