MCKENZIE, Tenn. – For their second of two non-conference contests in the Volunteer State, Brewton-Parker College Women's Basketball battled (RV) Bethel (Tenn.) on Wednesday night in McKenzie, Tenn.

The Lady Barons (12-2) fought hard against the Wildcats (11-2) but ultimately fell short in a 56-50 defeat despite a solid second-half performance in Crisp Arena.

"We had an opportunity to win tonight, but we couldn't close it," Head Coach Steve Edwards said. "We came out with no energy and dug ourselves a deep hole. We climbed back and took the lead with just over two minutes to play."

"We had multiple opportunities to extend the lead, but we did not make the plays tonight," Edwards added. "Bethel is a good team, and they are extremely tough to beat on their home court. We will learn from tonight."

"Now it is time for us to get healthy over the break, and we look forward to the players spending time with family as well as getting some much-needed rest," Edwards mentioned.

How It Happened | First Quarter

The first quarter of play was a rather slow scoring affair for both sides as a total of just 15 points were scored between the pair. Bethel managed to hold Brewton-Parker to just five points for the quarter.

Madison Evans opened the game with a free throw before Angel McRae scored at the 5:22 mark. Evans laid one in at 3:16 to complete BPC's scoring tally within the first 10 minutes of play. The Lady Barons struggled to connect on shots, shooting 2-of-16 from the field and 0-for-7 from beyond the arc.

How It Happened | Second Quarter

Bethel came alive in the second quarter while Brewton-Parker was still sluggish on the offensive end of the floor. After a free-throw from Keonya Mincey at the 9:18 mark, followed by a trey from Micah Bess with 8:08 on the clock, BPC was down 17-9 with 7:16 left to play in the half.

Evans laid one up at the 7:13 mark to cut the deficit down to six, but the Wildcats responded with an eight-point swing to grasp onto a 25-11 lead with four minutes remaining. McRae scored with 3:50 on the clock with A'Aliyah Clay's trey following at 2:13, yet that was not enough to pull the deficit under double figures as Bethel shut the quarter with a 31-16 lead.

How It Happened | Third Quarter

After a sluggish first half, the Lady Barons woke up in the second half by starting with improvement in the third quarter. Cori Keats opened things up with a swift three-pointer which was followed three minutes later by a layup from Evans, cutting the Bethel lead down to 10.

The Wildcats answered with five points to hold a 38-23 lead with 4:27 to play before the Lady Barons closed out the quarter with an 11-6 stretch to pull the deficit back down to 10. Keats knocked down a trey at 1:32 while Clay followed with one of her own with 22 seconds on the clock to close the period down 44-34.

How It Happened | Fourth Quarter

After an early bucket from Bethel, the Lady Barons took the next three and a half minutes to produce a massive 14-point swing which took control of the score with a 48-46 lead, leaving 6:08 to play.

Unfortunately, BPC could not take advantage of the huge momentum shift as Bethel was able to respond with a free throw and a layup to recapture the lead by one with 3:30 to play. At the 2:23 mark, McRae found the basket to boost the Lady Barons into a 50-49 lead, but the Wildcats had yet another response.

Brewton-Parker's offensive production went ice cold for the final two minutes of play as Bethel was able to take advantage of the struggling Lady Barons. The Wildcats closed out the game with a 7-0 run. Bethel sealed the game shut to win 56-50, scoring five of the last seven from the charity stripe.

Inside The Statistics

• The BPC squad finished the night shooting 29.5% (18-of-61) from the field, 23.3% (7-of-30) from three, and 58.3% (7-of-12) from the foul line.
• Evans led the game with 14 points, snagging five rebounds, and dishing out three assists while notching five blocks and two steals in the process.
• McRae produced another double-double with 11 points and a game-leading 13 rebounds.
• Both teams gave up 12 turnovers apiece, but Bethel secured an 8-5 lead in steals.

Next Up

• Brewton-Parker will take some time off before returning to the court on Jan. 4 with all Southern States Athletic Conference action left to play. The Lady Barons travel to Hattiesburg, Miss. to take on William Carey (Miss.).