Box Score


LeVelle Moton Postgame Comments NC A&T

Photo Gallery:  NC A&T vs. NCCU

DURHAM, N.C. (NCCUEaglePride.com) – In front of a fired-up 3,039 mostly maroon-clad fans of North Carolina Central University, the Eagles held arch-rival North Carolina A&T State University to a season-low 46 points, shooting 27.5 percent from the field in route to a 65-46 conference win over the Aggies in McDougald-McLendon Gym on Saturday.
 
The win was not only the Eagles fourth in-a-row, but NCCU earned its first conference victory since February 15, 2007, an 80-75 win over then-CIAA (Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association) foe Bowie State.
 
The 138th edition of this storied rivalry began a little slow offensively as each team struggled from the field seeing the maroon and gray hold on to a 15-9 lead more than 10 minutes into the game.
 
The Aggies swung back with an 8-0 run to grab its first lead of the day taking the air out of the home crowd on an R.J. Buck layup that put the score at 17-15 in favor of A&T with 6:44 to go.
 
Following a Lawrence Smith free-throw that gave the Aggies an 18-15 lead, senior Landon Clement (Raleigh, N.C.) drilled his second of four three-pointers on the day to tie the game up at 18.  That three began a 16-2 run by the Eagles to give them the 31-20 advantage with 2:32 to go in the first half.  Clement’s four treys give him 137 career three-pointers moving him up to fifth all-time at NCCU in that category.
 
The Eagles went to take 35-28 lead into the locker room after the Aggies went on an 8-4 run in the final minutes to close the gap at the intermission.
 
In the second half, NCCU’s defense put the clamps on North Carolina A&T, holding the Aggies to 5-for-23 shooting, making just five field goals and hitting just 1-of-9 from the outside.  North Carolina A&T scored just 18 points and never really threatened LeVelle Moton’s squad as the lead never dropped below seven points in the second stanza, and the Eagles pulled away for the 65-46 win.
 
The 19-point win for NCCU is the largest margin of victory in this series since a 76-57 Aggie win over the Eagles on Dec. 15, 1984.
 
The Eagles “Big Three” led the way in the conference victory with Dominique Sutton (Durham, N.C.) recording his fourth double-double of the season, 17 points and 11 rebounds, along with three steals and two assists, Clement finished with 16 points, while Ray Willis (Atlanta, Ga.) added 15 points and grabbed six rebounds in the victory.
 
North Carolina A&T (4-4, 0-1 MEAC) had just one player record double figures as Nic Simpson went 3-for-10 from the field to finish with 12 points in the loss.  In fact, A&T finished the day 2-for-18 (11.1 percent) from three-point land, and hit just 14 field goals in the loss.
 
In the ballgame, NCCU converted 21-Aggie turnovers into 26 points, and had a 12-2 advantage in fast break points.
 
NCCU (5-3, 1-0 MEAC) hits the road as they head up to Richmond, Ky., to take on the Eastern Kentucky University Colonels at Alumni Coliseum on Tuesday night, Dec. 6, at 8:00 p.m. 
 
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