HUNTINGTON, W. Va. – North Carolina Central University guard Dajuan Graf (Charlotte, N.C.) didn't show any signs of rust as he poured in a team-high 19 points on 8-for-13 from the field, however the Eagles dropped their season-opener 81-69 against Marshall University at the Cam Henderson Center on Saturday, Nov. 12.
 
Graf was also the leading facilitator for NCCU (0-1) as he dished out six assists and also nabbed two steals.  The Eagles hung tight with Marshall (1-0) through the first half as neither team led by more than six points in the first 20 minutes, and the Eagles went to the half down by three, 35-32.  Patrick Cole (Newark, N.J.) did most of his damage in the first period, as he compiled 13 of his 18 total points, and he also finished with eight rebounds.
 
In the second half, Marshall was able to string together a few scoring runs to open up a double-digit lead, and get their first win of the year.  A handful of Eagles made their maroon and gray debut, including a double-double from senior guard Ron Trapps (Lancaster, S.C.) with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Del'Vin Dickerson (Houston, Texas) also collected 11 points.
 
The Thundering Herd were led by Terrence Thompson (Durham, N.C.) who had a game-high 20 points on his way to a double-double with 10 boards, and he was followed by Jon Elmore (Charleston, W. Va.) who had 17 points as four of the Marshall starters registered double-digit point totals.
 
The Eagles take their next shot at win number one in the 2016-17 season at Ohio State on Monday, Nov. 14 at 9:00 p.m. on ESPNU.