WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - The final eight minutes of North Carolina A&T game against William & Mary was about as exciting as the final eight minutes of a women's basketball can be.

The Aggies rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit to take the lead before W&M came back to earn a 74-68 win Thursday night. As exciting as the final eight minutes were for the crowd assembled at William & Mary Hall, N.C. A&T head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs is concerned about the opening act.

"We are looking at a team who really wanted to win, but I'm sick of not playing at the start of halves," said Bibbs, who saw the Aggies six-game winning streak come to an end. "They have to be ready from the start, and we need leadership. Regardless of whether we win or lose, we have to leave it all on the court."

A sluggish start to open the game was coupled with a slow second half start. The Aggies (6-3) masterfully overcame both, but their second half start appeared to be fatal as the Tribe went on an 18-2 run to open the second half. The deficit was 13, 62-49, with 7:54 to play.

But Amber Calvin's steal and assists to Mikala Scott on the fast break ignited a 17-0 Aggies run.

Scott scored on another fast break layup seconds before a steal led to Calvin trailing the fast break to knock down a 3-pointer that cut W&M's lead to five at 62-57 with 5:05 to play. The lead went to two when Calvin found Scott open in the corner for another three. Tracy King tied the game when she grabbed her own rebound and scored. An Aggies team that looked tired after their impressive comeback didn't play tired.  

King scored on another layup after the Aggies collected two more offensive rebounds. When Jaylan Bodiford's block led to Calvin racing down court and hitting a runner, the Tribe was forced to call a timeout down 66-62 with 2:47 remaining. After the timeout was called, Calvin turned toward the Aggies bench and yelled, "Let's go."

Calvin had reason to be pumped. She and Scott combined for 13 points during the run with Scott leading the way with seven.

"I can truly say we went hard to get back, but we didn't have enough defense to hold and contain them," said Bibbs. "We must step up our defense. We cannot win without defense."

W&M answered the Aggies terrific run by scoring the next eight points to take a 70-66 lead with 43 seconds to play. Calvin ended the run with two free throws, which followed the Tribe's knockout punch.  Taysha Pye dribbled into the lane, drew the Aggies defense long enough to find Janine Aldridge wide open for a three that gave the Tribe a five-point advantage with 30 seconds remaining.

""The take away from this game is that we need to control possession and limit turnovers," said Bibbs.  "We have to play one possession at a time and not rush ourselves. Our errors are just a sign of immaturity. We do not have the growth that we need, but you grow in games like this."

Scott led the Aggies with 16 points. Calvin had another great game passing the ball as she finished with 10 points and seven assists. The Aggies out-rebounded the taller Tribe (42-31), but the Tribe shot 52 percent from the floor.

Thanks to its inside presence, the Tribe was able to take an early 6-1 lead. But the Aggies overcame the slow start to take a 26-21 lead before a layup by the Tribe's Emily Correal layup tied the game at 32 at the half.

"We have no time to waste," said Bibbs. "We have to start playing well early. We have to have all five players playing with a lot of intent."

The Aggies are back in action Sunday afternoon when they travel a few miles from W&M to Old Dominion to face the Monarchs at 2.