ROCK HILL, S.C. - North Carolina A&T's freshmen are talented enough to keep the women's basketball team atop the MEAC standings, but young enough to keep head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs shaking her head.
A day after one of the worse defeats in the Bibbs era, the Aggies responded with authority as they defeated Winthrop 81-56 in the second game of the Winthrop Tournament played at the Winthrop Coliseum on Sunday.
Freshman guard Alishia Mosley led the way with 22 points on 5-for-10 shooting from 3-point range. She also dished out five assists, grabbed five rebounds and turned the ball over just once in what was her first collegiate start. Freshman Sabre Proctor came off the bench to contribute 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Freshman Tracy King was also a part of the youthful uprising as she finished with 14 points off the bench. Sophomore Jaquayla Berry added a double-double with 17 points and 12 boards. Mosley earned All-Tournament honors.
"We needed this win," said Bibbs. "They could have folded from the game the night before, but they didn't. We minimized our turnovers, and played good offense and defense."
Throughout the first half, it appeared the Aggies were having a hangover from their 119-71 loss to Central Michigan the day before. Two Mary Hathaway free throws gave the Eagles a 27-15 lead with 4:37 remaining in the half.
And then King happened.
The Alexandria, Va., native popped open for a 3-pointer to put the lead under 10. On the Aggies' next trip, she converted on a short jumper. A few minutes later, she worked to get herself open again. This time, Mosley found her on the wing for another 3-pointer that sliced the Eagles' lead to 30-23 with two minutes remaining in the first half.
"Our freshmen played well tonight," said Bibbs, who started two freshmen and two sophomores on Sunday. "Tracy gave us a spark in the first half, and Alishia played like we knew she could play."
The Aggies seemed to take charge after King's outburst. Mosley hit another three just before the half to put the Aggies down 30-27 going into the locker room. The two teams played evenly over the first 10 minutes of the second half. But King's layup with 9:25 remaining gave the Aggies a 49-48 advantage. They never trailed again.
N.C. A&T went on a 15-5 run that was capped off by a Mosley 3-pointer that put the Aggies ahead by double figures for good. Lacey Lyons led the Eagles with 17 points.
The Aggies return to action Thursday night when they travel to Norfolk, Va., to play Old Dominion at 7.
