DAVIDSON, N.C. (Dec. 28, 2022)--The Morgan State women's basketball team closed out the 2022 portion of its schedule and its non-conference slate with a tough 65-62 loss on Wednesday evening at John M. Belk Arena.
 
Morgan State (7-6) dropped a season-long fourth straight with the loss, while the host Wildcats improved to 7-7 and recorded the program's 500th all-time victory.
 
Despite the loss, Morgan State secured its third straight winning record against non-conference opponents. Last season the Lady Bears went 6-4 in non-conference play and 3-1 during the 2020-21 campaign.
 
Charlene Shepherd and Gabrielle Johnson each scored a team-high 15 points to lead four Morgan players in double figures scoring. Ja'Niah Henson finished with 12 points and Sunshine McCrae added 11. Taylor's Addison, Shepherd and McCrae each pulled down a game-high seven rebounds.
 
The Wildcats were led by Elle Sutphin, who scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed a game-high seven boards. Suzi-Rose Deegan tallied 19 points, knocking down three of the team's five three-pointers.
 
The game was tight throughout, with seven lead changes and three ties, as neither team held a double-digit advantage.
 
Davidson used an 8-2 run to start the second quarter to take a seven-point lead (25-18), its largest lead of the game. Morgan State closed out the period on a 12-2 spurt to take a 30-27 advantage at the intermission.
 
McCrae scored on a layup and knocked down the free throw to complete a three-point play to give Morgan State a 33-27 lead with 8:58 remaining in the third quarter. The six-point advantage would be the Lady Bears' largest of the game.
 
The guests maintained the six-point lead at 39-33 when Henson connected on two free throws with 5:37 left in the period. That's when the Wildcats responded with a 16-9 run triggered by a three-pointer by Deegan to give the hosts a 49-48 lead after three quarters of play.
 
A free throw by Henson evened the score at 53 all with 6:58 left in the game, but Davidson would use an 8-2 run to extend its lead to 61-55 with 1:32 remaining.
 
Morgan State will kick-off 2023 at home on Saturday, Jan. 7 against North Carolina Central in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opener. Tip-off is at 2 pm at Hill Field House.