BOWIE, Md. – The Bowie State men's basketball team (7-18, 5-9 CIAA) recognized four seniors prior to tip-off but the outcome of the contest resulted in a 74-51 setback to Shaw (10-8, 6-6 CIAA) on Senior Day Saturday afternoon inside A.C. Jordan Arena.

The four seniors that were honored featured Kobby Ayetey (Accra, Ghana), Godlyvictor Okafor (Greenbelt, MD), Dexter Turner (Washington, DC) and Justin Route (Washington, DC)

Sophomore David McCullough (Bowie, MD) led Bowie State in scoring with 16 points while Route added 11 points. Offensively, the Bulldogs struggled from the floor accounting for 27-percent shooting (18-60), hitting just 5-of-20 from beyond the arc but was able to go 12-for-19 from the free throw line.

Bowie State got off to a slow start in the opening half. In fact, the Bulldogs trialed the Bears 20-2 in the first six minutes of play forcing the Bulldogs call a timeout. Shaw maintained a lead of at least 14 for the rest of the half including scoring four of the last seven points of the half as BSU trailed the Bears 38-23 at the half.

The Bulldogs woes continued in the second half, falling behind by 25 when the Bears posted a 16-6 run at the 15:34 mark. Plagued offensively, Bowie State trimmed the deficit to 22 on a dunk from Route at 1:34 but the Bears ended any hopes of a comeback for BSU, responding with a 3-pointer to solidify the win over the Bulldogs.

Shaw hit 26 of its 51 shots from the field, including 10-of-21 from the 3-point line and 12-of-17 from charity stripe. Three players finished in double figures led by Corey Rutherford with 15 points for the Bears.

The Bulldogs will return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 16 for a road tilt at Virginia State. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.

For the most up-to-date information on Bowie State University Athletics and its 13 varsity sports teams, please visit www.bsubulldogs.com