TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Howard University women's basketball team couldn't hold off Florida A&M in the second half and ultimately fell, 55-51, on Saturday afternoon at the Lawson Center in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) outing.  

The Bison are even on the season with a 10-10 overall record and a 6-2 mark in conference play. The Rattlers moved up to 7-15 (5-4 MEAC).

Redshirt junior Erin Blaine recorded her second double-double of the season on a career-high 13 rebounds and 11 points. Senior Sydni Johnson tallied her fourth straight game in double digits with 14 points and four steals.

Redshirt senior Te'Shya Heslip added 10 points, six steals, five assists and five boards to the mix, while freshman Jayla Myles pulled down six rebounds.  

Both teams shots 34.5 percent (19-55) for the game but it was the final 20 minutes that made a difference. The Rattlers had a 52.2 field goal percentage (12-23) in the second half but the Bison only shot 28 percent (7-25).

FAMU also outscored Howard in the paint, 36-20, got 36 points from its bench and earned 20 points on second chance attempts.

Myles scored the first basket of the game for the Bison at the 7:50 mark after both teams had taken multiple trips up and down the court without much to show for it. The Rattlers didn't get on the board until a couple of free throws with 5:56 on the clock. Freshman Star Fitzgerald-Greer gave HU the lead, 7-6, with a layup and free throw. At the end of the opening quarter, Howard had a 12-8 edge and had limited FAMU to just two field goals.

With 5:58 left in the second quarter, the Rattlers knotted the score at 17 until junior Tajzhane Dopson laid the ball in, making it 19-17 in favor of the Bison. Heslip came up with back-to-back baskets to extend the lead to 23-17 with 3:58 to go before the break. In the final minute, Johnson connected from downtown before Myles swatted the ball away on the opposite end and Johnson hit a jumper to send Howard into halftime with a 30-19 upper hand.

The Rattlers started the third quarter on an 11-3 run over 3:34 but the Bison were still ahead, 33-30. Howard had to call a timeout after FAMU cut the deficit to one, 35-34, and the Rattlers came back onto the court and took the lead, 38-35. Blaine got the putback to tie the game at 40 with 1:56 left in the quarter. Heslip sank her free throws and HU headed into the fourth quarter down 43-42.

Johnson caught the ball down low for a layup to open the final period. With five minutes remaining in the game, the Bison were trailing the Rattlers, 49-44. Dopson made the and-one count and Heslip drove to the hoop to bring Howard within two, 53-51, with 2:07 to go but a pair of late foul calls on the Bison put the game out of reach, 55-51.

Shalaunda Burney-Robinson had a game-high 15 points for the Rattlers. Alicia McCray and Shakerrya Morrison came away with six points and eight rebounds each.

Howard continues its stay in Florida when it heads to Bethune-Cookman on Monday, Feb. 6. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.