Cole, Williams propel Howard over UNC Wilmington

Dec 23, 2017, 07:03 am

EL PASO, Texas -- Freshman RJ Cole poured in a career-high 42 points and Charles Williams added a season-high 30 points as the duo accounted for 90 percent of Howard's offense in an 80-75 victory over UNC Wilmington on Friday at the Sun Bowl Invitational.

Cole connected on 13 of 22 shots from the floor, including 5 of 8 from 3-point range, and made 11 of 13 free throws. He added six rebounds, four assists and four steals. Williams hit 11 of 19 from the floor, including all four of his 3-pointers for the Bison (3-12).

Devontae Cacok finished with 19 points and 17 rebounds for the Seahawks (2-9), while Ty Taylor II added 14 points and Jeffrey Gary scored 13. Jordon Talley came off the bench to score 10 with six assists.

Cacok scored the last four points of the first half to give the Seahawks a 40-32 lead at intermission. Cacok's layup stretched the UNC Wilmington lead to 10 early in the second half. But Cole took over from there, scoring 18 of the Bison's next 21 points and his jumper with 3:07 left gave Howard a 71-70 lead. He also accounted for five of Howard's last six points to preserve the win.