Boxscore
BALTIMORE, Md. – Morgan State senior Troy Smith made the shots that counted, then watched as Bethune-Cookman didn't.
Bethune-Cookman led by a point with under a minute left to play when Troy Smith was fouled on a loose ball rebound. The senior stepped to the line with 37 seconds left and knocked down a pair of free throws to give the Bears a 48-47 lead. The free throws turned out to be the final points of the ballgame.
Kevin Thompson had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Bears (18-7, 10-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference), who have won 10 straight, including their last 12 regular season conference games since last season.
Morgan State won despite shooting 56 percent (13-23) from the free throw line and playing its second game within a 24-hour time span.
“This is the second week we've had to play back-to-back games,” said Morgan State head coach Todd Bozeman.
“We had a lot of stuff going on within the team this weekend and we fought through it. When you continuously pull through adversity like that, hopefully it's a sign that you have a good team. This should make us stronger.”
Reggie Holmes, who entered the game as one of the nation's leading scorers (22.9 ppg), was held to six points on 2-of-12 shooting.
Cliff Reed scored a game-high 15 points (4-20 FG) to lead the Wildcats, who have lost the last five times to the Bears, and he had a chance to win the ballgame in the final seconds. Reed dribbled the clock down to 4 seconds before he drove to the hole for a shot in the lane. His shot hit the rim and Albert Abrahams' follow-up tip rimmed out, and time expired during the scrum for the rebound.
"I didn't want to extend the game and play overtime and we were going to win it on the last shot," said Bethune-Cookman head coach Cliff Reed. "We had our best player taking the last shot and we were in the position we wanted to be."
Morgan State outrebounded the Wildcats 35-33 and committed six turnovers to Bethune-Cookman's eight, and the Wildcats wouldn't have needed a last shot had it not been for missed opportunities down the stretch.
Morgan State shot 33 percent (6-18) in the second half – including 1-for-4 from 3-point range – and 33 percent (3-9) for the game.
Joe Davis added 9 points for the Bears, and Ameer Ali and Troy Smith had six apiece. Davis went 4-for-6 from the field including a big layup at the 1:21 mark play that gave Morgan State a 46-44 lead. Bethune-Cookman answered on the ensuing possession when Reed fed Jarrell Thomas for a 3-pointer from the baseline with 57.1 remaining.
Morgan State avoided its first home loss of the season and have not been upset at home since a 49-47 loss to Hampton on February 23, 2009.
The Bears will continue its 4-game homestand when they host non-conference opponent Winston-Salem State on Saturday (Feb. 13). Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at Hill Field House.
