AGGIES
COME UP SHORT AGAINST BULLDOGSWills finishes with 10 points and seven rebounds
GREENSBORO, N.C., DECEMBER 3, 2005 – N.C. A&T men’s basketball team knows the wins are coming. The Aggies know there is a day coming soon when the free throws at the end of the game fall as well as the clutch shots. The hard part is waiting for that moment to arrive.
N.C. A&T had a victory over the preseason MEAC favorite S.C. State Bulldogs in his grasp on Saturday, but couldn’t quite close the deal as the Bulldogs escaped with a 62-61 overtime win at Corbett Sports Center in front of 4,346.
The Aggies were led by junior guard Austin Ewing who finished with 13 points on 4-for-10 shooting from 3-point range. Sophomore Jason Wills added 10 points and seven rebounds. Brian Mason led the way for the Bulldogs with a game-high 27 points and 11 rebounds. Thurman Zimmerman had nine points and nine rebounds.
“We showed tonight that we have caught up with people talent wise, but not majority wise’’ said N.C. A&T men’s basketball coach Jerry Eaves.
“We played the best team in the conference toe-to-toe tonight with their best player back in the lineup,” Eaves said referring to first-team All-MEAC selection Zimmerman’s first action of the season after recovering from knee surgery. “But when it came down to it they were playing juniors and seniors and we’re still at the point where we’re relying on sophomores and some juniors. So we know it’s coming. We know we’re almost there. When we learn how to win, when we complete the process of learning how to win, things are going to start to happen for us.”
Free throws are what prevented the Aggies from claiming their first conference opener since Dec. 12, 1998. The Aggies were just 15-for-27 from the line for the game and 4-for-8 from the line in overtime.
With 2:50 remaining in overtime, sophomore Demetrius Guions did hit two free throws to pull even with the Bulldogs at 60. Chris Miller-Williams answered for the Bulldogs with a dunk off of a no-look pass from Thurman Zimmerman.
Senior Michael Hayes had a chance to tie the game, which would have been the xx tie of the game. But Hayes made 1 of 2 from the line with 1:28 remaining in overtime as the Bulldogs held to a 62-61 lead. A huge Guions block would give the Aggies the ball back, and Wills capitalized by drawing a foul on William Sago.
Wills missed both foul shots with a minute remaining, but the Aggies were not the only ones who had trouble shooting free throws in overtime. The Bulldogs Brian Mason missed both of his free throw opportunities with 11 seconds remaining in the game. Junior Greg Roberts grabbed the rebound for the Aggies and raced down the floor, but could not control the ball once he got into traffic and was not able to get off a shot.
The loss drops the Aggies to 0-4 overall and 0-1 in the MEAC, while the Bulldogs improve to 2-4 and 1-0.
“When you’re in a program like ours, a program that is trying to rebuild, the toughest part of rebuilding is get over the hump,’’ said Ewing. “When we finally get over that hump and start believing and knowing we can win and do the little things it takes to win, we’re going to be a good basketball team.”
The Aggies are in action again 7 p.m., Wednesday in Blacksburg, Va., versus Virginia Tech. The Aggies don’t return home until Jan. 14 when they face Florida A&M at 4 p.m.