DURHAM - To the North Carolina A&T women's basketball fans, the Aggies 84-74 win over N.C. Central Saturday afternoon at McDougald-McLendon Gym meant a lot because it was a win over the archrival. To head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs it meant a lot because it was the Aggies first conference win.
To Aggies guard Mikala Scott, the meaning was much different. Scott hit huge shots down the stretch to lead the Aggies(5-2, 1-0) to victory. They were shots that would have made her grandfather proud.
Scott's grandfather James Rhodes passed away this week. They were incredibly close. Scott returned home to be with her family during the week to mourn, and did not practice with the Aggies. She returned to compete in the game, instead of attending the funeral which was held on Saturday, because it was something her grandfather would have wanted.
"I think it meant a lot for him to see me play," said Scott, who finished the game with 15 points and a team-high four steals. "This game was for him."
And Rhodes would have been proud of her performance. It was Scott who helped the Aggies gain control of the game late in the second half with a tremendous three-point shot from the far left corner of the court to put the Aggies up by six with 2:05 left on the clock.
The shot came after the Eagles overcame a 20-5 deficit in the first half to tie the game at 66. Following a layup by JaQuayla Berry, N.C. Central made it a 68-68 game with 3:08 on the clock on a jumper by Alesha Jenkins, with an assist from Blaire Houston. But then a steal by freshman Ariel Bursey, who entered the game after center Nikia Gorham fouled out, and a foul by Jenkins brought Scott to the line. She sank the shot, and then turned around and collected a layup to put the Aggies ahead 71-68.
After a missed layup Tiffany Gray, Scott made the tremendous three-pointer in the deep corner by the A&T bench to give the Aggies a larger cushion as the shot all but sealed the game for A&T.
"We had to do a lot of things down the stretch right, and towards the end of the game right, we couldn't make any mistakes, because everything that they shot went in," said Bibbs, who is nine wins away from reaching 500 for her career. "They just outhustled us, they really did. It was anyone's game. I really don't like games like this. I'm happy for the win."
Berry ended the game with a season-high 28 points and 14 rebounds-it was her eighth career double-double and her second in as many games. Redshirt sophomore Amber Calvin also had a strong game, collecting 17 points and a team-high seven assists.
"I was really nervous when Nikia went out, because I had to put a freshman in, but Bursey held on," Bibbs said. 'You just tell them, 'Guys this is the MEAC, this is what you're going to see, this is it.' This is a great start for them to feel that electricity that's in the building tonight."
The Aggies went on an 8-0 run to take back control of the game after the Eagles tied it. The Aggies finished the second half by making eight free throws, and guard Tracy King collected a layup to help secure the win.
"When your point guard, your floor leader says, 'We're not going to lose this game,' you're not going to lose it," said Bibbs about Calvin. "[The Eagles] were right there to win it, but we made big shots. Mikala had a big shot, and free throws fell. I always tell them in practice that these are the things you must do, because these are the things that win games."
Berry and Scott's leadership on the floor was the key to victory, Bibbs said.
"These are your leaders," she said. "They're young, but they are leaders. They know that in order to get this game, they have to do it as a team. You can't have kids out there throwing up shots and not really executing. I know what (Berry) told them-'Hey guys, we can play better than this and we're going to play better than this. 'That's good when you have them say that."
The Aggies play at home one final time before spending the rest of December on the road. After taking a week off for finals, N.C. A&T will host Johnson C. Smith University on Dec. 12 at 7 p.m.
