Boxscore
Bear Shots
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Morgan State connected on 7-of-8 free throws in the final three minutes to seal the Bears' 74-69 victory over Howard University on Wednesday night in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference action.
Reggie Holmes scored a game-high 21 points and Marquise Kately added 12 of his 14 points in the second half to help the top ranked Bears improve to 17-10 overall and 11-2 in the conference.
Howard (7-19, 5-7 MEAC) did just about everything it could to win the ballgame, but still fell short as they dropped their third straight.
The Bison shot 52 percent from the field, shot 60 percent (17-28) in the second half, had four players score in double-figures and still came up short in the end.
Kyle Riley scored 18 points to lead the Bison, while Paul Kirkpatrick had 14 points, and Eugene Myatt and Curtis White added 12 each.
Morgan State got off to a solid start and held a 24-10 lead when Reggie Holmes hit a three-pointer with 12 minutes left in the first half. The Bears shot 50 percent from the field in the first 20 minutes to take a 37-30 lead at the half. Holmes led the way for the Bears with 11 points.
With Holmes, Kately and Jermaine Bolden taking turns scoring, the Bears twice held 10-point leads. But each time, the Bison rallied on the scoring of Riley, Kirkpatrick and Curtis White.
Curtis White hit a 3-pointer with 3:08 remaining in the game to trim the Bears lead to 67-64. It turned out to be the closest the Bison would get for the remainder of the game.
Down the stretch, Howard missed out on some opportunities and the veteran Bears capitalized as Holmes and Kately combined to score seven of their team's last nine points.
Morgan State scored 18 points off of 13 Bison turnovers and torched the Bison in the post by scoring 40 points inside the paint.
Jermaine Bolden was steady for the Bears throughout the night as he posted 10 points to go along with seven assists.
Morgan State will face cross-town rival Towson (9-19, 4-12 in CAA play) on Saturday, February 21 at 4:00 p.m. in the Towson Center as one of 51 games that comprise the seventh annual ESPNU BracketBusters. The Morgan State Bears are the first MEAC team to participate in the two-day men's basketball event that pits 102 potential NCAA Tournament hopefuls against each other three weeks prior to Selection Sunday.
