North Carolina Central tops Bethune-Cookman 65-51

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) Jordan Parks scored 16 points as North Carolina Central pulled away from Bethune-Cookman for a 65-51 win to stay undefeated atop the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference on Saturday.

N.C. Central (19-6, 11-0) built a 12-point lead at halftime, but it evaporated in the second half and Bethune-Cookman grabbed the lead on a pair of free throws by Brandon Stewart to make it 42-41 with 11:00 left.

Nimrod Hilliard scored on a layup to make it 46-42 and the Eagles pulled away down the stretch.

Among the top field goal shooters in the country (62 percent), Parks knocked down 6 of 7 shots from the field and was 4 of 5 from the free-throw line. N.C. Central shot an efficient 53.2 percent from the floor (25 of 47), including 6 of 18 from beyond the arc.

Stewart finished with 17 points to lead the Wildcats (8-17, 4-6).