DURHAM, N.C. – Senior center
Brendan Medley-Bacon tied the North Carolina Central University record with eight blocked shots as the host Eagles withstood a furious comeback effort by MEAC-leading Howard University to knock off the Bison, 68-60, in front of a near capacity crowd at McDougald-McLendon Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Three of Medley-Bacon's eight rejections came in the final three minutes to keep Howard scoreless, as NCCU posted the last eight points of the contest to extend its win streak to five games.
NCCU junior guard
Justin Wright scored a game-high 24 points on 8-of-19 shooting from the floor with a pair of triples and was perfect on all six free throws.
On Senior Day, the NCCU seniors combined for 34 points. Medley-Bacon led the senior standouts with 12 points and seven rebounds to go along with the 7-footer's eight swats, which equals the school record by Adrian McKinnon from Jan. 18, 1989 (vs. N.C. A&T).
Nicolas Fennell recorded eight points off the bench,
Eric Boone amassed five points, seven boards and a team-best five assists,
Marque Maultsby tallied four points and seven caroms,
Cameron Butler contributed three points, and
Kris Monroe added two points.
Howard (17-12, 9-3 MEAC) was topped by forward Shy Odom with 15 points and seven rebounds. Jordan Wood grabbed a game-high 10 boards for the Bison.
NCCU (15-11, 8-4 MEAC) appeared to be rolling early in the second half, building a 15-point cushion when Maultsby made a layup at 13:33 to give the Eagles a 50-35 advantage.
During the next eight minutes, however, the Bison posted a 23-8 run, with Kobe Dickson and Jelani Williams scoring six points each in that time, to tie the score at 58-58 with 5:18 remaining.
The contest was even at 60-60 with 3:43 on the clock, but Howard's final six possessions yielded no points, as Wright registered six of the Eagles' last eight points to secure the triumph.
NCCU returns to action on Monday, Feb. 27, as the Eagles host Norfolk State University (20-8, 9-3 MEAC) in another big conference match-up inside McDougald-McLendon Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
For game tickets and more information about NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.
