NCCU vs NC A&T Game Notes (PDF)
THE GAME
North Carolina Central University is riding a three-game winning streak as the maroon and gray dive head-first into conference play as official members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) as the Eagles take on the arch-rival Aggies of North Carolina A&T State University in the first conference matchup for NCCU as a Division I member.
THE SERIES
NCCU split its contests with the Aggies last season beating North Carolina A&T at the Corbett Sports Center in an overtime showdown (90-84) on Jan. 21, 2011 and dropping another intense matchup to the rival Aggies at home in front of a sellout crowd on Feb. 21, 2011 (72-67). This will be 138th meeting between the bitter rivals as NCCU is 63-74 all-time against A&T in the series dating back to 1930.
NCCU SPORTS NETWORK
The NCCU Sports Network will have wall-to-wall coverage of Saturday's doubleheader beginning at 1:45 p.m. with Eagle Gameday built by Dayeco Construction Co. on both the internet broadcast and a live stream with each game made available for $8.95 for each game. Play-by-play voice of the NCCU Sports Network, Chris Hooks, will be calling the action for both contests as Danielle Johnson-Webb will provide color for the women’s game, and Joe Simmons will then step in as the color analyst for the men’s game. Fans can also follow @NCCUAthletics and @NCCUradio on Twitter by using the hashtag #NCCUNCAT to follow all the action from McDougald-McLendon Gym. .
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY "AGGIES"
North Carolina A&T enters the first MEAC clash of the year with an identical record with the host Eagles entering the contest at 4-3 with three wins in the Gate City including an 87-65 win over cross-town foe UNC Greensboro 87-65 in the Greensboro Colisuem. The victory for the Aggies was aided by four players including three off the bench scoring in double-figures. 6-3 guard R.J. Buck led all scorers in the win with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting. The Aggies finished the contest shooting 57.1 percent that saw NC A&T go 16-for-26 (61.5 percent) from the field in the first half to bolt out to a 42-28 lead. Junior forward Austin Witter scored 12 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds in 25 minutes, while going 3-for-4 from the outside. 6-9 center Kam Sheperd contributed 11 points and 3 rebounds in 16 minutes. As a team A&T was 10-for-21 (47.6%) from three-point range. After seven games, the Aggies are second in the league in scoring 82.9 points a game, second in free-throw percentage 73.0 percent, third in field goal percentage (44.1 percent), second field goal percentage defense in 39.6 percent. A&T is led in scoring by senior Nic Simpson who is averaging 12.6 points per contest. Simpson is also fourth in the league 5-8 point guard Marc Hill is second in the MEAC behind Chapman in assists per game averaging 4.9 helpers per contest. The Aggies have 10 student-athletes who log 10 minutes or more, and seven who average six points or more. After starting 0-3 with losses to Creighton, Iowa, and Campbell, the A&T has won its last four contests. The Aggies are led by ninth year head coach Jerry Eaves who is currently 91-163 at the helm and is credited with bringing the North Carolina A&T basketball program out of the bottom of the MEAC.
UP NEXT
NCCU hits the road and won’t return home until after the New Year as the Eagles head up to Richmond, Ky. to take on the Colonels of Eastern Kentucky on Tuesday, Dec. 6 at 8:00 p.m. Five days after that contest, the Eagles will take on the Wolfpack of N.C. State in historical Reynolds Colisuem on Sunday afternoon, Dec. 11 at 3:00 p.m. The next home contest takes place Jan. 7, 2012 against Florida A&M at 4:00 p.m.
