Dec. 16, 2009
Final Stats
DURHAM, N.C.- (NCCUEaglePride.com)- The second "Battle of the Eagles" between North Carolina Central University and Florida Gulf Coast University saw the host team turn the ball over a season-high 29 times, while junior transfer C.J. Wilkerson (Oxford, N.C.) scored a game-high 26, but it wasn't enough as the home NCCU Eagles fell for the first time at home this season, dropping a 76-67 decision on Wednesday night at McDougald-McLendon Gym.
Wilkerson's career-high 26 points led all scorers on the night, eclipsing his previous high of 21 against James Madison University back on Nov. 23 in Miami. That was one of a few positive notes on a night where FGCU earned 21 steals and converted those 29 turnovers into 29 visiting Eagle points. With all that going against the host team, NCCU still had its chances down the stretch.
Trailing 66-60 with 4:40 to go in the ballgame, LeVelle Moton's gutsy squad clawed back with a 5-0 run that cut the deficit to just one with 2:43 left. Fourteen seconds later, sophomore Nick Chasten (Raleigh, N.C.) had a wide-open three in the right corner in front of NCCU's bench that could have buried Florida Gulf Coast for good. Unfortunately for NCCU, Chasten's shot was no good, and the visiting Eagles pulled away from there with a 10-2 run and a nine-point win.
The first half was another nip-and-tuck battle between two even squads as it was tied up at 39 apiece, but foul trouble crept in on NCCU in the second half and it bit the host Eagles when it mattered the most as, both junior Michael Glasker (Newport News, Va.) and T.J. Granger (Richmond, Va.) fouled out in critical moments of the second half.
Both Chasten and redshirt freshman Dami Sapara nearly compiled double-double numbers for the second consecutive game, as Chasten finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Sapara dropped in five points and nine rebounds.
NCCU (2-8) embarks on a six-game road trip that begins Saturday night in historic Assembly Hall as the Eagles take on the Hoosiers of Indiana University at 8:30 in Bloomington, Ind. on the Big Ten Network.
To stay up-to-date with NCCU Athletics, log on to NCCUEaglePride.com, the official website of the NCCU Athletics Department.
