NORFOLK, Va. – Junior forward Ebony Brown tallied a season-high 20 points to lead Norfolk State past Bethune-Cookman 74-61 at Joseph Echols Hall on Saturday afternoon.

The Spartans (3-5, 1-1) got things started on a layup from Brown with 19:14. Brown scored the first six points of the game for NSU, which included a 3-pointer from the corner with 17:57 left before halftime to give the Spartans a 7-4 lead. Brown shot 4-of-5 from behind the arc on the afternoon.

The Lady Wildcats (2-6, 0-1) responded with a bucket from Kailyn Williams and a 3-pointer from Chastity Rene Taylor to tie the game at nine with 16:13 to go in the first half.

Another 3-pointer from Brown with 15:47 remaining in the half sparked a 16-5 run for the Spartans. NSU led by as many as 11 points with 9:14 left in the first half after freshman Dominique Harper capped the run with a jumper to make the score 25-14.

Kayla Crawford knocked down a pair of free throws with 7:36 left before halftime to spark a 12-3 run for B-CU. The Lady Wildcats managed to pull within two, 28-26, after a jumper by Shakeyia Colyer with 2:56 to go in the half.

Junior Quineshia Leonard scored the last field-goal of the half for NSU with 48 seconds on the clock to send the Spartans into halftime with a 33-30 lead over Bethune-Cookman.

NSU came out of the break on a 7-0 run that included a 3-pointer and jumper from Brown, as well as a layup from senior Rachel Gordon. NSU continued to lead the Lady Wildcats, 40-30, with 17:33 left to play.

B-CU answered on the end with another basket from Crawford at the 17:10 mark. B-CU pulled within two after a pair of 3-pointers from Taylor and Houston. The Lady Wildcats trailed NSU, 40-38 with 15:46 remaining in regulation.

After almost two minutes without a basket for the Spartans, Leonard knocked down a jumper in the paint with 14:01 left to play to make the score 42-38. The Spartans outscored Bethune-Cookman 26-18 in the paint on the afternoon.

Both teams traded baskets for the next four minutes. B-CU's Kendra Cooper made a pair of free-throws with 10:19 left to keep the team within three. The Lady Wildcats continued to trail NSU, 48-45.

Freshman Logan Powell answered on the other end with a 3-pointer from the left side to give the Spartans a 51-45 lead over B-CU with 10:10 to go in the game. NSU shot a season-high 40 percent (6-of-15) from 3-point range.

Deja Gibson drained a 3-pointer of her own for the Lady Wildcats to keep them within three points with 9:47 left. B-CU only shot 28 percent (7-of-25) from 3-point range.

Both teams went cold for the next two minutes. Gordon made a jumper with an assist from Corbo at the 7:33 mark to make the score 53-49. Corbo had a career-high seven assists in the game.

B-CU never led in the game and the last bucket for the Lady Wildcats came on a 3-pointer from Gibson with three minutes left to play with the score at 66-55.

Corbo scored the last field goal of the game on a layup with 2:14 on the clock to give NSU a 68-55 lead over B-CU. The Spartans and the Lady Wildcats shot free-throws the rest of the way. NSU shot a season-high 94.7 percent (18-of-19) from the free throw line. Corbo was perfect (10-of-10) from the free throw line on the afternoon.

NSU shot 50 percent (25-of-50) on the afternoon. The Spartans had three players in double-figures, including Brown, who led all scorers with 20 points. Corbo posted 19 points and. Leonard finished with 12 points and five rebounds. Other notable scorers for NSU include Powell, who scored a career-high nine points, and Gordon, who tallied eight points and nine rebounds.

The Lady Wildcats shot only 32.8 percent (19-of-58) overall and were 72.7 percent (16-of-22) from the free throw line.

The Spartans will have the week off before returning to the court to host East Carolina on Dec. 17. Tip-off is at 6 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall.