FORT VALLEY, Ga. -- A strong run to start the second quarter gave Miles the lift it needed in a 69-57 win over Fort Valley State Saturday afternoon. The win was the second straight for the Lady Bears (7-3, 3-1 SIAC West) and fifth in a row over the Lady Wildcats (5-8, 2-3 SIAC West).

FVSU opened the game on a 14-4 run and lead 17-9 at the end of the first quarter. But when the second quarter began, Miles found the footing it needed to take over the contest. The Lady Bears started the period on an 18-3 jaunt to flip the scoreboard. Sakina Wynn had seven points during the stretch, nailing a 3-pointer at the 5:26 mark to give Miles the lead for good, then closing the run after Amya Bryant (6 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) stole the ball, pushed it out to Jaylen Snipes on the break, who flipped it to Wynn for the finish for a 27-20 advantage.

During the game-changing run, Miles held Fort Valley to 1-of-6 shooting from the field and forced seven turnovers, which turned into five points. The Lady Bears led 32-28 at the break but they seemed to have found the blueprint to success and it rolled right into the second half.

Miles started the third quarter by scoring the first eight points to push its advantage into double digits for the first time on a Wynn (20 points, 5 rebounds) basket at the 6:55 mark. An offensive rebound and putback by Charlisa Wellington gave Miles a 49-34 lead with 2:33 left in the quarter and with 10 minutes left, the Lady Bears' advantage was 13 points.

Again, Miles opened the fourth quarter scoring the first eight points. When Snipes scored on a short jumper on the break, the Lady Bears had opened their largest lead of the game - 64-40 - with 5:25 to go. While FVSU pitched a shutout over the final 2:28 of the game, the damage had already been done as Miles emptied its bench in closing out the win.

Jah'ne Brown had 12 points and Nikki Culbreath added 11 points for Fort Valley State. Mya Millner (10 points, 7 rebounds), Kahyanne Bolton (9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists) and Raiana Johnson (6 points, 8 rebounds) were some of the top contributors for Miles, which is back in action on Jan. 6 when it hosts Albany State. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.