NORFOLK, Va. — Visiting Bethune-Cookman held Norfolk State to 38 percent shooting and placed three players in double figures to hold off the Spartans 64-57 in a battle for second place in the MEAC on Saturday afternoon at Echols Hall.

Jarrell Thomas scored a team-high 14 points off the bench for the Wildcats (12-11, 6-3), while John Holmes added 13 and nine rebounds. C.J. Reed scored 12 points and had five assists.

Michael Deloach (Rocky Mount, N.C.) scored a game-high 18 points for the Spartans (7-13, 5-4), who lost their second straight to fall into a third-place tie in the standings with South Carolina State. Corey Lyons (Bronx, N.Y.) added 13 points and Joseph Dorsett-Jeffreys (Bronx, N.Y.) contributed a season-high 12.

The Spartans scored the first seven points of the game and held B-CU to one field goal in the first six minutes. But the Wildcats' stingy half-court zone defense kept them in it. NSU led 18-9 after five straight points by Brandon Monroe (Raeford, N.C.), but B-CU closed the half on a 21-7 run.

NSU opened the second half like it did the first, scoring the first seven points. Dorsett-Jeffreys scored the last four of those to give NSU a 32-30 lead.

The Spartans maintained a 52-49 edge after two Lyons free throws with 6:49 remaining. But Tobias Mahone, who scored eight points, sparked a 7-0 run with a 3-pointer and a layup on consecutive possessions. The Wildcats never trailed again, holding NSU to just on field goal in the final eight minutes.

The Wildcats shot 46 percent from the floor and had just 12 turnovers, offsetting NSU's 37-27 edge on the boards. The Spartans were just 4-of-15 (27 percent) from 3-point range and 15-of-26 (58 percent) from the free-throw line.

Monroe had a game-high 14 rebounds to go with seven points for the Spartans. Deloach added five rebounds and three steals.

The Spartans are back in action Monday when they host Florida A&M at 7 p.m. The game till be televised live on ESPNU.