The Cougars, who have won four straight games, close the regular season with a 22-3 record overall and an 11-2 mark in the NJAC. As the top seed in the NJAC South Division, they will host a second-round NJAC playoff game Thursday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. against an opponent to be determined.
Rutgers-Camden closes its season at 8-17 overall and 2-11 in the NJAC with its sixth straight loss.
After the lead changed hands seven times early in the game, Kean took the advantage for good, 12-10, on a three-pointer by sophomore guard Melissa Beyruti (Union City, NJ/Union Hill). That shot enabled Beyruti to tie the program career record of 152 treys set by Kellie Rice (2000-04), and added another trey in the second half to set a new program record at 153 on her way to 17 points.
Leading 16-14, the Cougars rattled off 13 straight points on their way to a 40-26 halftime lead.
By halftime, Cooper had 14 points and 13 rebounds, while junior forward Carmen Oyola (Hammonton, NJ/Hammonton) had seven points to lead the Raptors.
In addition to Cooper and Beyruti, the Cougars received 10 points apiece from junior forward Kimberly Smith (Burlington, NJ/Burlington) and senior forward Chi Clark (Maplewood, NJ/Columbia).
The Cougars shot 34-for-72 (47.2 percent) from the field, while the Raptors were 26-for-56 (46.4), but Kean had an overwhelming 56-26 advantage off the boards, led by Cooper. Clark added eight rebounds for the Cougars.
Kean also received a game-high seven assists from freshman guard Colby Greenlee (Stroudsburg, PA/Pocono Mountain East), while freshman center Cardiss Jackman (Tobyhanna, PA/Pocono Mountain West) added a game-high five steals.
For Rutgers-Camden, Oyola and junior guard Imani Hafiz (Franklinville, NJ/Delsea Regional) each collected 12 points, while junior guard Amber Parker (Pennsauken, NJ/Pennsauken) added 11 points.
Freshman guard Alexis Culbreath (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township) added eight points and a career-high six assists for the Raptors. She also tied Hafiz with a team-high three steals. The three steals helped Hafiz close the season with 108, the second-highest single-season total in program history, passing the 106 by Tamara Carey (1994-95). They also allowed Hafiz to move into second place on the career charts with 277 steals, passing the 275 by Jen Hans from 1991-95.
For the Raptors, junior forward Crystal Pezzano (Brockton, MA/Brockton), junior guard Krystal Jankowski (Somerdale, NJ/Sterling) and senior forward Karen Carter (Pennsauken, NJ/Pennsauken) also eight points apiece. Carter finished her four-year career playing in 83 games, scoring 466 points and grabbing 309 rebounds.