LORMAN, Miss. — The Arkansas-Pine Bluff Lady Lions built a commanding lead and held on down the stretch to defeat Alcorn State 66-61 Thursday night at the Davey L. Whitney Health & Physical Education Complex, improving to 13-15 overall and 10-8 in SWAC play.

Indiya Bowen was the story from the opening tip, pouring in a game-high 26 points on 7-of-17 shooting with five three-pointers, seven free throws, four assists, and four steals. She gave UAPB its first lead of the game with a three-pointer early in the first quarter and never let the Lady Lions look back, connecting on back-to-back threes in the second quarter to push the advantage to double digits and put UAPB firmly in control.

Khaniah Gardner was a force inside all night, finishing with 13 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting, 13 rebounds — including four offensive — and a steal. Jailah Pelly added 15 points on 7-of-16 shooting with seven rebounds and four steals, providing relentless energy on both ends of the floor. The trio of Bowen, Gardner, and Pelly combined for 54 of UAPB's 66 points.

The Lady Lions surged ahead early, building an 18-6 first-quarter advantage before heading into halftime up 33-25. UAPB then came out of the break with renewed energy, outscoring Alcorn State 17-15 in the third quarter to extend the lead to as many as 14 and take a 50-40 cushion into the fourth.

Alcorn State made a late push in the fourth quarter, pulling within four with just over a minute remaining. Bowen answered by stepping to the free throw line and converting two clutch free throws with 21 seconds left to push the lead to six, then added one more at the buzzer to seal the 66-61 final.

Jasmine Davis rounded out a steady performance with two points, four assists, and two steals. As a team, UAPB finished with 12 steals, forced 15 turnovers, and converted them into 15 points off turnovers — a difference-making effort that kept Alcorn State at arm's length throughout the night.