Over the past three seasons, Miles has positioned itself as one of the top defensive teams in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, consistently suffocating teams with pressure, forcing bad shots and turning those opportunities into points on the other end.

After allowing just two teams to shoot 50 percent from the floor during the first 74 games under head coach Pete Asmond, the Lady Bears have seen it happen twice in the past 10 days. Both times have produced double-digit defeats, including a 74-59 defeat to Clark Atlanta Monday night at Knox-Windham Gymnasium. The Panthers took down the Lady Bears for the second time this season, shooting 51 percent from the field on an array of easy buckets, many coming from the 30 turnovers that Miles produced in an otherwise forgettable performance.

Things did not look so bad at the start when Kiyara Howard-Garza knocked down 3-pointers on Miles' first two shot attempts for an early 6-3 advantage. Unfortunately, Miles would not make another shot from the field for the rest of the quarter as CAU took a 21-7 lead. The Lady Bears missed seven shots and turned the ball over 10 times in nearly 10 minutes of game time before Nakedria Turner scored less than a minute into the second quarter. But another cold spell ensued as the Panthers used a 16-2 run - with Eunique McKinney's bucket being the only score - to open a 39-11 chasm with three minutes left before halftime.

The Lady Bears trailed by 26 points at the break, their largest halftime deficit since being in a 27-point hole at Tuskegee during the 2021 campaign played during COVID restrictions. But Miles did not accept the rough first half performance and roll over. In fact, Clark Atlanta found itself in a ball game very quickly.

After scoring just 15 points in the first half, Miles went on a blistering 21-2 run to start the third period. Howard-Garza hit another 3-ball and Feliah Greer (10 points, six rebounds, five assists) added a 3-point play at the beginning of the run. Iemyiah Harris drained four free throws, a result of two technical fouls called against the Panthers. Harris then knocked down a 3-pointer and followed with another jumper to close the run that closed the gaping deficit to just 43-36 with three minute left in the quarter.

But the big comeback ran out of steam as Clark Atlanta was able to re-establish a double-digit lead before the end of the quarter. Harris hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the early stages of the fourth quarter and a bucket by India Brown (four points, six rebounds) drew Miles to within 59-50 with six minutes to go. The Lady Bears shot 52 percent from the field in the second half but the first half deficit was too much to overcome as CAU led by as many as 21 points late in the ball game.

Trinity Jones (25 points) and Atreonia Garner (22) were the top scorers for Clark Atlanta. Harris had a team-high 19 points to go along with four rebounds, Howard-Garza scored 11 points and added three rebounds, two assists and two steals, and Makayla Rieves had four points, four rebounds, four blocked shots and two steals for Miles, which plays at Tuskegee on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for noon.