Cook scores 17 points and adds five assists

 Box Score
GREENSBORO, N.C., December 16, 2006 – The Aggies used strong defense and hit crucial free throws down the stretch to earn a 64-59 win over Navy at Corbett Sports Center Monday night.

“When you have a young team, like we do, you try to instill in [the players] that defense wins games,” said head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. “We won because of our defense tonight, especially in the second half.”

Amber Bland led the Aggies with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Tweet Cook added 17 points and five assists. Brittanie Taylor-James provided 11 points off the bench as the Aggies improved to 3-1 at home. They are in the midst of their first four-game winning streak in seven seasons.

The second half featured four different ties. Carly Meyer provided the last tie with a pair of free throws to even the game at 48 with 7:32 left to play. The Aggies would turn to their defense and timely foul shooting to put the game away as Bland hit two free throws to put the Aggies ahead for good.

Cook forced a turnover which led to a layup, made a steal, and hit another layup for a six point Aggies lead. After another Navy turnover, Ahmad Williams hit a jumper from the wing to cap an 8-0 run and give the Aggies a 56-48 lead with 5:37 left to play.

N.C. A&T (5-4), who has struggled at the line this season, knocked down the free ones in the clutch on Monday to seal the win. The Aggies hit 6 of 8 free throws down the stretch to keep the Mids at bay. The Mids (3-7) cut the lead to five, 57-52, with 4:18 to play, but Taylor-James hit two free throws to push the lead back to seven.

Navy’s Carly Meyer helped Navy cut the Aggies lead to five again, this time with 1:52 to play. But it was Taylor-James who hit three out of four free throws in a 16-second span to put the Aggies up eight. Meyer led Navy with 22 points and eight rebounds, while Margaret Knap scored 16.

The Aggies, who forced 25 Mid turnovers, are over .500 for the first time since the 1995-96 season. The win also marks the first time the Aggies have defeated four non-conference teams in one season since the 1995-96 campaign.

N.C. A&T never trailed after a 10-2 spurt in the first half that gave them a 30-21 lead. LaPorsha Lowry came off the bench to hit a pair of layups, while Cook added a layup and two free throws in the run, sparking the Aggies to a 29-27 halftime edge.

“It was good to see our bench get involved, especially scoring the ball,’’ said Bibbs, who is now 15 wins away from 400 for her career. “That’s a good sign. It was a great win tonight, even though it wasn’t a pretty win. They all count and we’ll take them however we can get them.”

 The Aggies will continue their homestand on Wednesday night against Elon at 7 p.m. in Corbett Sports Center.