FARMVILLE, Va. (December 19, 2020) – Howard University women's basketball team suffered their first setback of the season after a 78-89 loss at Longwood (LU).
 
With the loss, HU dropped to 3-1 while the Lancers improved to 3-4 on the year.
 
Four Bison reached double figures in scoring, led by freshman guard Destiny Howell (Queens, N.Y.) with 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting from downtown.
 
In the first period, Longwood shot over 57-percent (12-of-21) from the field and held an 11-point advantage after one, 23-34.
 
Reigning Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Week freshman guard Kaiya Creek (Seat Pleasant, Md.) connected on a trey ball in the opening minutes of the second and sliced the deficit to single digits, 30-38, but LU kept the pressure on ballooned the margin back to 11 after a long ball from Adrianna Shipp, 30-41.
 
Howard cut the lead down to nine multiple times, but the Lancers responded and held a 13-point advantage at the break, 38-51.
 
Longwood held its largest lead of the game moments after halftime, 38-53, but the Bison refused to go away.
 
Despite fighting a double-digit deficit throughout the third, HU finished the third on a 7-0 run and trimmed the margin to seven after three, 59-66.
 
In the fourth, HU cut the deficit to six after senior guard Jayla Thornton (Newark, N.J.) made a jumper with under three minutes to play, 74-80, but Longwood would finish the game shooting 90-percent (9-of-10) at the charity stripe to hold off another Howard comeback.
 
Despite shooting nearly 86-percent (18-of-21) at the foul line and scoring 22 fastbreak points, the Bison were unable to get into a flow offensively. HU shot 38-percent (27-of-71) from the floor, including 25-percent (6-of-24) behind the arc.
 
Thornton finished with 13 points while shooting a perfect 8-of-8 at the free throw line. Creek and sophomore forward Makayla Minett (Chicago) tallied 10 points apiece off the bench.
 
Freshman Anzhane' Hutton (Cedar Hill, Texas) produced a team-high 10 boards and seven points while sophomore point guard Iyanna Warren (Accokeek, Md.) chipped in eight points and eight dimes in the loss.
 
For the Lancers, Kyla McMakin had a game-high 31 points while Akila Smith flirted with a triple-double (20 points, 16 rebounds & eight blocks). Anne-Hamilton Leroy added 19 points in the win.
 
Tuesday (Dec. 22), HU returns to The Burr where they will host Atlantic 10 foe Richmond. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.