GREENSBORO, N.C. – In the 161st installment of the Eagle-Aggie Classic as part of the CBS Sports Classic: HBCU Showcase, the North Carolina Central University men's basketball team fell 85-72 at North Carolina A&T State University on Saturday afternoon in the Corbett Sports Center.
Junior guard Po'Boigh King finished with a team-high 21 points. Fellow junior Dionte Johnson and senior guard Keishon Porter joined King in double figures with 11 points each.
Head coach LeVelle Moton switched up the starting lineup as Isaac Parson, Floyd Rideau Jr., Perry Smith Jr., Kelechi Okworogwo and King were the first five Eagles to take the floor.
NCCU (6-10) took the first lead with an and-one layup from Parson followed by a made free throw. After a 5-0 lead, North Carolina A&T scored 10 straight points. A layup from junior forward Jaqai Murray would end the run after the first media timeout.
NC Central would start a run of its own before the 8-minute media timeout. The 8-0 run was sparked by a three from senior wing Timmy Adedire and a steal as well that led to a layup for Okworogwo. King followed with a deep three for a 30-27 lead.
With 2:24 remaining in the first half, the Eagles and Aggies were tied up at 39. NCAT would go on a 10-0 run to end the half leading 46-39.
There were nine ties and nine lead changes, all in the first half. King led the Eagles in scoring through the first 20 minutes with 11 points.
NCAT (4-10) started to pull away in the second half as guards Ryan Forrest and Landon Glasper began to heat up.
Johnson scored seven of his 11 points in the second half as he was able to cut through the defense to finish at the rim.
In the second half, the Eagles (61 percent) had a better shooting percentage than the Aggies (57 percent), but NCAT scored four more field goals than NC Central. For the game, the Maroon and Gray shot 24-of-63 from the field.
NCCU evened out the 10-3 offensive rebounding advantage that the Aggies gained through the first 20 minutes, finishing the game at 15 apiece, but the Eagles were still out-rebounded 44-39.
NC Central took care of the ball only turning it over seven times but the Eagles only forced eight turnovers from the Aggies.
NCCU cut the lead back to single digits (54-45) with 17:55 remaining, but NCAT would extend its lead by as much as 20. The Eagles couldn't complete the comeback falling 85-72.
North Carolina A&T ended an eight-game losing streak with the victory. The leading scorers for the Aggies were Forrest and Glasper who finished with 30 and 25 points, respectively. Nikolaos Chitikoudis grabbed a game-high 22 rebounds.
The Eagles wrap up their non-conference schedule on Tuesday, Dec. 31 against St. Andrews University at 3 p.m. on New Year's Eve in McDougald-McLendon Arena.
For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com, or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.
