PRINCESS ANNE, Md. (February 10, 2025) – Graduate guard Destiny Howell (Queens, N.Y.) poured in a game-high 24 points and freshman guard Saniyah King (Washington) added 11 points as the Howard University women's basketball team pulled away to a 66-56 win over Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) at the Hytche Center.
 
The win was the third straight for the Bison, who improved to 13-9 overall (6-1 MEAC).
 
Howell, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, connected 8-of-14 from the floor overall, including a season-best 6-of-9 from beyond the arc.
 
Each time, the Hawks would get within striking distance, the 6-foot-1 sharpshooter would convert on one of her signature bombs from long range. UMES (8-14, 3-4 MEAC) pulled to within five, twice in the fourth quarter, but each time, Howell repelled their comeback attempts with one of her long balls.
 
King, the odds-on-favorite for MEAC Rookie of the Year, again proved to be the steady influence of the Bison offense, complementing the scoring of Howell while running the offense and getting the ball to teammates in the right position to score. The newcomer added six assists, only two turnovers and seven rebounds to her stat line during 40 minutes of play.
 
Howard Coach Ty Grace has been waiting for her other long-range shooter, Tyana Walker (Leawood, Kan.), to come alive. The redshirt sophomore has shown flashes of her 2023-24 season when she was named the MEAC Rookie of the Year. If the past two games are any indications, it could prove to be a huge boost for the Bison offense. Walker finished with eight points on 3-of-6 shooting, including 2-of-4 from the three-point line.
 
Walker and Howell combined for 8-of-13 from downtown.
 
Howard also got a big boost from forwards Sa'lah Hemingway (San Bernardino, Calif.) and Vanessa Blake (Summerville, S.C.), who combined for nine points and 13 rebounds on a night when team-leading rebounder junior forward Zennia Thomas (Cleveland) failed to get a rebound. Thomas was named MEAC Player of the Week earlier today after registering 44 points and 16 rebounds in the previous two wins over South Carolina State (Feb. 3) and North Carolina Central (Feb. 8).
 
The Howard defense continues to play consistent basketball. Tonight, they held UMES to 32-percent shooting from the floor. The bench proved to be valuable, outscoring its counterparts, 16-11.
 
It must also be noted that the Bison showed marked improvement in taking care of the basketball after they committed 15 miscues after 26 turnovers in Saturday's win over North Carolina Central.
 
The Hawks were led by Mahogany Lester (14 points), Brianna Barnes (10 points) and Ashanti Lynch with 10 points off the bench.
 
NEXT UP: Howard travels to Delaware State to take on the Hornets Saturday (Feb. 15) at 2 p.m.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.