Morgan State tops N.C. A&T

Two-time defending champion Morgan State isn't ready to give up its title just yet.

The Bears, behind junior center Kevin Thompson, were never threatened by cold-shooting N.C. A&T as they rolled 77-59 in a quarterfinal game of the MEAC tournament Thursday night at Joel Coliseum.
Thompson, a big part of the Bears' first two tournament titles in Winston-Salem, scored 24 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked three shots in 26 minutes.

Not that they needed more motivation, but the Bears, the fourth seed, have been under the radar after losing their final three regular-season games, including one to the Aggies (15-17) in Greensboro. Thompson, the projected player of the year in the conference, was selected to the all-conference second team.

Thompson Dominant In Win Over North Carolina A&T, 77-59

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Kevin Thompson put in a dominating performance, coming off the bench to pour in a gamer-high 24 points, grab 12 rebounds and block three shots to help Morgan State defeat North Carolina A&T, 77-59 in the quarterfinal round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's basketball tournament at the Joel Coliseum.

The Bears (16-13), the Number 4 seed, advance to the semifinal round where they will play Bethune Cookman, the Number 1 seed at 6 pm.

Thompson set the tone early in the first half when he entered the game and proceeded to score 18 points, connecting on all six of his shots from the floor. Morgan State led, 43-33 at intermission.

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North Carolina A&T Beats Morgan State In MEAC Conference Matchup

Greensboro, N.C. - Thomas Coleman scored 21 points and Marc Hill sank six free throws in the final minute as North Carolina A&T beat Morgan State 68-60 Monday night.

The victory by the Aggies (15-15, 9-6 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) ended a three-year reign by the Bears (15-12, 10-5) as conference regular-season champions, giving Bethune-Cookman the No. 1 tournament seed.

North Carolina A&T led 46-34, in the second half, but after Morgan State cut it to six points, 60-54, Hill missed two free throws for the Aggies. A 3-pointer by the Bears' Aric Brooks made it 60-57 with 1:39 left.

Coleman has A&T cooking

GREENSBORO — Before stepping onto the Corbett Center floor for the last time, Thomas Coleman sat an extra minute at his locker. As the N.C. A&T center paused to reflect, soon the only two people who remained were the senior and the coach who recruited him.

Coleman finally broke the silence. "He said, 'Coach, I remember you sitting at my kitchen table,' " A&T coach Jerry Eaves said, referencing Coleman's recruitment. "We both just kind of looked at each other and laughed."

Aggies Lose Battle For No. 2

GREENSBORO - No matter what problem the North Carolina A&T women's basketball team presented to Morgan State Monday evening, the Bears had the same two solutions throughout. Morgan State frustrated the Aggies with efficiency from the free throw line and 3-point arc. As a result, the Bears won the battle for the No. 2 seed in the MEAC Tournament with a 74-69 win at Corbett Sports Center.

The Bears hit 11 3-pointers and made 23 of 25 free throws. Erin Hawkins led the way with 17 points on 5-for-10 shooting from 3-point range. Brittany Dodson added 15 points on 9-for-10 shooting at the line.

In her final game at Corbett Sports Center, senior Jaleesa Sams finished with 23 points and six rebounds.

"Morgan State did what they're supposed to do, they hit 3-pointers and hit free throws," said N.C. A&T head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. "They executed brilliantly tonight."

The Aggies trailed by as many as 14 in the second half. But a Sams 3-pointer tied the game at 56 with 4:20 remaining. The Bears responded by going on a 9-2 run that included a 6-for-6 stretch at the free throw line and a 3-point shot by Brittany Noel that gave the Bears a 65-58 lead with 1:26 to play.

N.C. A&T got the lead down to three points four times within the last 40 seconds of the game. But the Bears converted 7 of 8 free throws to put the Aggies away.

The Bears (16-12, 10-5) secured the No. 2 seed with the win. The loss for the Aggies (14-13, 9-6) was costly. They slip into a third-place tie with Howard. The two teams split this season, but Howard owns the tiebreaker over the Aggies because its margin of victory was greater. Therefore, the Aggies need a Howard loss to secure the third seed.

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A&T upsets Hampton

GREENSBORO, N.C. — With its 74-63 victory over first-place Hampton on Monday night, N.C. A&T took an important first step toward climbing the MEAC ladder.

Playing in their fourth straight game without guard Nic Simpson, the Aggies (12-14, 7-5) weathered 27 points from Kwame Morgan to pull away from the Pirates (19-6, 9-3) in the final minutes in the Corbett Sports Center.

Simpson, who likely will be sidelined until the final week of the season with a knee injury, is A&T's second-leading scorer at 14.6 points per game. "This team has really stepped up. They really have. It just doesn't show all the time," A&T coach Jerry Eaves said. "To have lost Nic, the team has made a decision they can win."

Aggies' Streak Comes To An End

GREENSBORO, N.C. - There were times on Monday when it looked like North Carolina A&T's streak would end without much of a fight.

That is until the Aggies started to fight. They took conference-leader Hampton's best shots, and kept getting off the canvas. But missed opportunities on the offensive end, and made Hampton free throws finally finished off the Aggies in a 74-66 loss to the Pirates.

The loss brought to an end one of the most impressive streaks in MEAC history. The Aggies went four years without losing to a conference opponent at home. The winning streak lasted 30 games. It lasted so long; no current player on the roster was an Aggie when the streak began.

"A streak like that says you have had one of the better programs for a long time," said N.C. A&T head Patricia Cage-Bibbs.

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NEXT GAME: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19 @ SOUTH CAROLINA STATE, 2 P.M., ORANGEBURG, S.C.

In wild game, Hampton University holds off North Carolina A&T

HAMPTON, VA — In a frantic back-and-forth game that involved 11 ties and three lead changes, Hampton University defeated North Carolina A&T 82-77 Monday night at the HU Convocation Center.

Junior guard Kwame Morgan led all scorers with a career-high 36 points, going 11-for-22 from the floor and hitting six 3-pointers. His short jumper from 24.1 seconds to play sealed the victory for HU (14-4, 4-1 MEAC). Junior guard Darrion Pellum, a Hampton High product, added 19 points while Charles Funches scored 12. Seven Pirates made the scoring column. Danny Agbelese grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds and blocked three shots.

Missed free throws ruin A&T's upset bid

HAMPTON, Va. — Thomas Coleman scored his 1,000th point and a few more, but N.C. A&T had no answer for Kwame Morgan, particularly in the second half Monday. Morgan scored 36 points — 21 in the second half — and fueled a 15-5 run that stretched a two-point lead into an 82-77 win in MEAC play at Hampton's Convocation Center. It was the best night of his career.

The Aggies (8-10, 3-2 in the MEAC) climbed back to within three at 76-73, but — typically on this evening — Morgan hit a 16-footer to establish a Hampton lead that couldn't be overcome.

HAMPTON 71, N.C. A&T 36

Hampton (12-5, 5-0 Mid Eastern Athletic Conference) trounced visiting N.C. A&T (6-9, 3-2) 71-36 Monday for the Pirates’ fourth straight win. Freshman Pirates guard Nicole Hamilton (of Phoebus) scored 18 of her career-high 23 points in the first half, and Quanneisha Perry grabbed 13 boards.

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NC A&T Wins At Home Against FAMU 82-72

Greensboro, NC - The Florida A&M University Rattlers, with only eight players dressed, stood firm against the MEAC's leading team. The North Carolina A&T State University Aggies, faltered against the Rattlers, but held on to seal the victory with a solid shooting performance in the second half.

The Rattlers were led in scoring by Avery Moore, who put up 23 points, including five three-pointers. Moore was the leading scorer for the game. Amin Stevens dropped in 19 points for the Rattlers and scraped the boards for 13 rebounds. Yannick Crowder grabbed 10 boards.

FAMU basketball teams defeated at North Carolina A&T

The Florida A&M men's and women's basketball teams were defeated by North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. on Saturday. In the women's game, the Aggies jumped out to a 10-point lead in the first seven minutes, which wound up being too much for the Rattlers to overcome.

FAMU got within four with 45 seconds remaining, but N.C. A&T closed the game out, 75-71, with stingy defense. Tameka McKelton led FAMU with 17 points. Antonia Bennett had 15 and Shekeira Copeland finished with 14. Qiana Donald led FAMU with 10 rebounds.

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North Carolina A&T 50, Arizona State 56

'Tis the season for college basketball letdowns. With the holidays inching closer, teams across the land are about to break for a few days, turning that final get-away contest into an adventure. Arizona State nearly fell victim Thursday afternoon, needing to rally from a 12-point deficit in the second half to defeat spunky North Carolina A&T 56-50 at Wells Fargo Arena.

ASU coach Herb Sendek credited the 5-6 Aggies, picked to finish eighth in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference preseason poll, but he also questioned himself, scheduling a noon tip so the players could get started on a three-day break.

"They have a game, they're all hustling to the airport," Sendek said. "With a disproportionate number of newcomers, these guys haven't been home (in a while), so I know it's just human nature (to look) forward to hustling out of here."

Photos from the game

Aggies fall short in bid for upset

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Rihards Kuksiks scored 15 points, including a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 2:52 left, and Arizona State rallied to beat N.C. A&T 56-50 on Thursday. Kuksiks' 3 gave the Sun Devils (7-4) a 53-50 advantage, and they held on to come back from a 12-point deficit.

Nic Simpson, who missed three 3s in the final 1:23, scored 17 points and had five assists to lead the Aggies (5-6). A&T led 29-23 at halftime and extended its advantage to 38-26 in the first four minutes of the second half. But Aggies forward Thomas Coleman picked up his third and fourth fouls in a 26-second span and had to go to the bench with 14:55 remaining.

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N.C. A&T rides play of Coleman, Hill

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- In the aftermath of N.C. A&T's wild overtime win over Norfolk State on Saturday, Aggies head coach Jerry Eaves had already taken off his coat, loosened his tie and unbuttoned his top button. As he took the walk to his seat in the postgame interview room, Eaves carried a telling look -- one of exhaustion, joy and most clearly, relief.

"I can't complain," Eaves deadpanned in response to how he was doing. Talk about an understatement. Thanks to 25 points after intermission from Marc Hill and a brilliant all-around effort from center Thomas Coleman, A&T escaped with an 89-81 win.

Norfolk State loses league opener in OT

GREENSBORO, N.C. - After committing a foul in the final seconds of overtime, Norfolk State forward Kyle O'Quinn pounded the ball on the floor over and over again. The score was already out of reach and his foul had no effect on the outcome, but O'Quinn couldn't help himself. His team had been so close, only to see a late lead crumble away - again.

"For them to shoot the way they did and for us to stay that close, we let it slip out of our hands," O'Quinn said of his team's 89-81 loss to North Carolina A&T (5-3). "It kind of makes you mad at the end if you don't come out the victor." The game quickly boiled down to a battle between the two tallest players on the court.

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A&T's inside game is too much for Greensboro College

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Thomas Coleman scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead N.C. A&T over Greensboro College 79-58 on Friday night, but it wasn't the kind of performance Aggies coach Jerry Eaves wanted.

"I think we overlooked Greensboro College,'' Eaves said. "We didn't play with the enthusiasm that we needed, and we also shot the ball poorly. It was good to get a win, but I think we had our minds on what is going to happen on Monday (against UNCG). It's never good to look ahead when you have an opponent staring you in the face."

The Aggies (3-3) led 43-23 at halftime and led by as many as 22, 43-21, before a jumper by Luqman Tijani with 37 seconds left before the break pulled the Pride within 20.

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North Carolina A&T overtakes UNC Wilmington

GREENSBORO, N.C. — N.C. A&T weathered 13 3-pointers by UNC Wilmington and won 84-79 in overtime Tuesday. "We're just so young," A&T coach Jerry Eaves said. "We have to learn how to finish games. We're going to have to grow with that."

The Aggies (2-3) used their quickness and defense to build a six-point first-half lead, forcing 12 turnovers. But the youth that Eaves lamented reared its head at the break as sophomore DaMetrius Upchurch was called for a technical for dunking during warm-ups.

After rallying in second half, UNCW falls in overtime at N.C. A&T

Greensboro, N.C. - Bad shots and turnovers infested the UNC-Wilmington offense during the first half Tuesday night against North Carolina A&T. Distracted by an upcoming break, the Seahawks paid for their sluggish start with a painful 84-79 overtime loss to the Aggies at the Corbett Sports Center.

UNCW (2-3) rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit with a flurry of 3-pointers and strong drives from its guards, including Ahmad Grant who hit 7-of-7 from behind-the-arc and scored a career-high 30 points.

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Videographer: SpeechlessQue (NCA&T Aggies Half-Time Show 11/20/2010)