AGGIES FACE BEARS PRE-GAME
N.C. A&T
Aggies
(5-8, 0-1 MEAC)
vs.
Morgan State
Bears
(6-7, 1-0 MEAC)
Jan. 12, 2008 •
Cal Irvin-Don Corbett Court (5,700)
Greensboro, N.C. • 4 p.m.
AGGIES’ PROBABLE STARTERS
G
10 Steven
Rush 5-11 185 Sr. 15.8 ppg 2.0 rpg
•
When he’s hot from the
outside, the Aggies are hard to beat
G
3 Austin
Ewing 5-11 160 Sr. 9.4 ppg 2.9
apg
•
He is coming
into his own as the Aggies point guard…
F 4
Trahern Chaplin 6-6 200 Sr. 4.0 ppg
3.9 rpg
•
Adds experience to the
Aggies starting lineup
F
20 Jason
Wills 6-6 208 Sr. 10.9 ppg
7.3 rpg
•
Does just about
everything on the court for the Aggies – pass, rebound and score
C
50 James
Porter 6-9 220 Jr. 3.0 ppg
2.9 rpg
•
Came to the Aggies as a project…he is now a starter
AGGIES’ PROBABLE
RESERVES
G 2
Glenn Nelson 6-3 185 Sr. 1.7
ppg 0.9rpg
• Is
hoping to get back in the Aggies rotation after seeing his playing time
drop
G 5
Tavarus Alston 6-0 160 So.
3.3 ppg 1.3 apg
•
The Aggies having an opening for a quality backup point guard. If he
wants it, the job is his.
F
10 Angelo
Hernandez 6-3 190 Sr. 4.8 ppg 3.6 rpg
•
He is third in the conference in steals.
F
11 Patrick
Gregg 6-7 190 Sr. 2.6 ppg 0.7
rpg
•
He’s slowly making his
way into the rotation
F
15 Kam Shepherd 6-8 215 Fr.
0.5 ppg 0.5 rpg
• Freshman who has a
lot of offensive tools…but will be brought along slowly
F
21 Ed Jones 6-7 220
Jr. 6.7 ppg 3.1 rpg
• Was a
starter early in the season….he has played well coming off the bench
C
23 Thomas Coleman 6-9 220 Fr. 7.1
ppg 5.8 rpg
•
He is a rookie with an
exciting future ahead of him
F
30 Julian McClurkin 6-8 225
Jr. 1.5 ppg 0.0 rpg
•
Walk-on who will try to make rotation
F
33 Nicholas Wilson 6-5 210
Jr. 3.6 ppg 1.8 rpg
• Hopes
to work his way back into the rotation after playing sparingly lately
F
34 Robert Johnson 6-6 200 So.
2.6 ppg 1.3 rpg
•
Local product who continues to develop into a good player
C
43 Chad Webster 6-10 210 Jr.
0.0 ppg 0.5 rpg
• Has
played sparingly this season
MORGAN STATE PROBABLE STARTERS
F
13 Coly Boubacar 6-9 220 Sr.
8.8 ppg 9.9 rpg
F 32 Marquise Kately 6-5 220
Jr. 13.0 ppg 4.7 rpg
F 44 Gilroy Hemsley 6-8 220
So. 0.6 ppg 1.9 rpg
G 3 Jermaine Bolden 5-9 175
Jr. 7.1 ppg 2.8 rpg
G 34 Jamar Smith 6-2 210
Jr. 18.5 ppg 5.2 rpg
THE SERIES
This will be the 73rd meeting between the Aggies and the
Bears. The Aggies lead the all-time series 46-26. Morgan State is 6-4
against the Aggies in the last 10 meetings. The Aggies won the last
matchup 91-79 in overtime. The two teams split last season.
THE BEARS
Morgan
State was not among the preseason favorites in the MEAC, but the Bears
certainly look strong as the conference season approaches. The Bears
played competitively against some of the best programs in the country.
They lost by four to UConn. They lost by four to Miami and they coming
off of an eight point loss at Seton Hall. The Bears are led by Jamar
Smith who ranks third in the conference with 18.5 points per game. The
Bears second-leading scorer Reggie Holmes hasn’t played the last three
games.
THE GAME
The Aggies
have yet to play in the New Year, but 2008 has to be better than the way
they closed out 2007. During the non-conference season, the Aggies
played second toughest schedule in the nation. Among the Aggie opponents
were nationally-ranked Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Miami and Washington
State. Three of those teams were undefeated when the Aggies played them
and three of those teams were ranked in the top 10 when the Aggies faced
them. Now, the Aggies begin a conference season that proves to be a
competitive one starting with Morgan State on Saturday. The Bears have
looked competitive during their non-conference season and should give
the Aggies a physical challenge in the post.
LOOK FOR…
…How
physical the Aggies are willing to play. If there is one of thing for
sure, the Bears are going to play a physical brand of basketball. How
the Aggies respond may determine their success.
…The Aggies rotation...During the non-conference season, head coach Jerry Eaves played some different combinations as he tried to settle on his rotation. With the conference season approaching, Eaves’ bench should get shorter as he tries to compete for the MEAC Championship.
…How the Aggies start the game…The Aggies have started slow in their last few ball games. The Aggies are at home, which should help them not start slow against a good rebounding Morgan State team.
PROBABLE STARTERS
|
Position # Player Ht. Wt. |
Comments |
|
Forward 20 Jason Wills 6-6 208 |
Jason Wills has been big on the boards for the Aggies this season…He has led the Aggies in rebounding in six out of the last seven games…He has led the Aggies in rebounding the last two seasons…Wills has compiled more than 1,000 points and 500 rebounds and could become the first player in N.C. A&T history to compile more than 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 assists…Wills needs 28 more assists to accomplish the feat…On the season Wills is averaging 10.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game…Wills ranks 18th in the conference scoring, second in rebounding and seventh in assists…He is the 20th player in Aggie history to exceed the 1,000 point plateau…Wills has not scored in double figures in his last two games…Those games were against nationally-ranked Miami and Washington State. |
|
Forward 4 Trahern Chaplin 6-6 215 |
Trahern Chaplin got his first start of the season on Dec. 5 against Southern Virginia and has made four consecutive since Dec. 5…He scored two points and had a season-high eight rebounds against No.4 Washington State on Dec. 28…On the season, Chaplin is averaging 4.0 points and 3.9 rebounds on the season…In his five starts for the Aggies, Chaplin is averaging 3.4 points and 3.6 rebounds and shooting 57.1 percent from the floor. |
|
Center 50 James Porter 6-9 220 |
Has worked hard in the off-season to put himself in the starting rotation this season…Adds another shot blocking presence to the Aggies roster, something they haven’t had in a number of years, but something they have an abundance of this season…Has started all 13 games for the Aggies this season, which is more starts than he has had in previous two seasons combined….He is averaging 3.0 points and 2.9 rebounds per game this season…He played 14 minutes against Washington State, was 0-for-2 from the floor and grabbed one rebound…The Cougars game marked the first time this season that Porter had failed to score…He has scored in double figues once this season, a 10-point, 4-for-6 from the floor performance against Montreat. |
|
Guard 1 Steven Rush 5-11 185 |
Steven Rush looks to get back on track from the outside now that the conference season is in full swing…Rush has hit 35 3-pointers this season, which ranks him third in the conference with 2.7 3-pointers made per game…Rush is averaging 15.8 points and 2.0 rebounds per game…He ranks eighth in the conference in scoring….After being a reserved last season, Rush came off the bench for the first eight games of this season before making his first start on Dec. 5….Rush has now started the Aggies last five games….As a starter, he is averaging 15.6 points, is shooting .372 from 3-point range and shooting .909 from the free throw line…As a reserve he averaged 16.0 points and shot .260 from 3-point range. |
|
Guard 3 Austin Ewing 5-11 160 |
Austin Ewing is in his third season with the Aggies…He was injured during his first season with the Aggies, playing just five games…He was awarded a medical redshirt for that season and therefore, has spent the last two seasons as the Aggies starting point guard…On the season, Ewing is averaging 9.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game…He ranks fifth in the MEAC in assists and his .378 3-point shooting percentage ranks him ninth in the conference…He was held scoreless against Washington State on Dec. 28. |