Danville, VA - Johnson & Wales Charlotte closed the 2024 portion of their schedule on Monday afternoon with a 59-48 win over Averett.

The Wildcats built a six point halftime advantage by holding Averett to just 7 of 28 shooting in the first 20 minutes. JWU spread the wealth on the offensive end, as seven different Wildcats scored in the first half, led by Jordan Durant's 7 points.

Maliah Preston hit a three pointer to open the third quarter, pushing the JWU advantage to nine. Averett fought back from that point, outscoring JWU 18-3 over the next 5:15 to take their largest lead of the game at 39-33. The Wildcats cut their deficit to just one at 42-41 with one quarter remaining.

The Wildcats used a strong defensive effort in the fourth quarter, holding Averett to just four points over the first eight and half minutes of the period. JWU scored 18 points of their own during that stretch, building their largest lead of the game at 59-45, before going on to win 59-48.

Durant led the Wildcats with 20 points to go along with 9 rebounds. Preston had 10 points, while Samara Britt grabbed 12 rebounds.

JWU is off until January 2nd, 2025 when they travel to Batavia, Ohio to take on Cincinnati-Clermont at 6:00pm.