PHILADELPHIA (December 21, 2024) – Graduate guard Destiny Howell (Queens, N.Y.) scored a team-high 14 points and freshman guard Saniyah King (Washington) and junior forward Nile Miller (Haddonfield, N.J.) added 13 points and 11 points, respectively, but the Howard University women's basketball team came up just short, 68-66, to Northwestern in the consolation game of the Hawk Classic at the Michael J. Hagan85 Arena.
 
The Bison (6-8) dropped their third straight while the Wildcats improved to 7-5 overall.
 
It was again King leading the way early with six of her team's points through the first half.  Unlike the game against St. Joe's Friday in the first round Friday (Dec. 20), this time she got help as 10 different Bison scored for the Howard, the most this season.
 
It was a team effort and Howell, Miller and graduate forward Kaiya Creek (Seat Pleasant, Md.) helped contribute to a 10-0 run that gave Howard a 33-28 lead at the half.
 
From there, the two teams took turns as they led or tied seven times before the Wildcats reeled off a 11-0 run that gave them a 55-54 advantage headed into the final stanza of regulation. 
 
The Bison fell behind by five points twice in the fourth period, but each time, Miller, senior forward Vanessa Blake (Summerville, S.C.) or Howell came up with answers. A combination of two free throws by Howell and a key basket by King forced a 63-63 tie at the 2:19 mark.  Northwestern's Delaney Thomas scored to give her team the lead, 65-63, at the 2:04 mark.
 
Blake then made one of two free throws to get within one, 65-64, with 71 seconds remaining.  But Thomas, who tallied 10 of her 16 points off the bench, hit another key basket with 25 seconds remaining.
 
The Bison had three more chances to tie or get within a point, but misses by King and later, a three-point attempt by Howell failed.
 
After Howard forced a Northwestern turnover, Miller was fouled and went to the foul line where she missed the front end of a one-and-one but the 6-foot-1 forward was able to convert a putback to make it 67-66 with four ticks on the clock.
 
Walsh was fouled and made one of two with no time left to close out the scoring and secure the win for the Wildcats, member of the BIG10.
 
Despite the disappointing result, there were a number of positive takeaways for the Bison.
 
Individually, Miller played her best all-around game of the season, almost recording a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds, both season highs. She also added a block and three steals to the effort.
 
King, who was coming off a career-best 23-point performance in the first-round loss to St. Joe's, continues to show why she is one of the best freshmen in the country. The 5-foot-7 D.C. native added four rebounds, two assists, a blocked shot and a steal to the stat sheet and she only had one turnover in 28 minutes of play. For her efforts, she was selected to the All-Tournament Team.
 
Howell, the 2022-23 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year, was coming off a subpar performance versus the Hawks. But despite her shooting woes of late, she was able to make shots when needed. Howell has been an important asset from the free throw line where she was 4-for-4 and she has now converted on 19 straight through three games.
 
Creek (seven points), Blake (three points & seven rebounds), junior forward Zennia Thomas (four points & five rebounds) and redshirt sophomore guard Tyana Walker (five points) all made meaningful contributions, which could be a harbinger of things to come.
 
As a team, Howard again took care of the ball with only nine turnovers, the second straight game with single-digit miscues.
 
The defense forced 20 Wildcat turnovers which led to 18 of their points. The team also had a 38-28 advantage on points in the paint and a 13-8 advantage in second chance opportunities.
 
Sullivan led all scorers with 17 points, Harter with 11 points and Thomas (16 points) and Cailiegh Walls (11 points), who combined for 27 off the bench. The Wildcats bench outscored their counterparts, 31-17, mainly due to the duo of Thomas and Harter. Northwestern also won the fast break battle, 12-2.
 
NEXT UP:  Howard closes out the 2024 schedule and nonconference play Sunday (Dec. 29) when they travel crosstown to take on American for a 12:30 p.m. tipoff.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.