WINSTON-SALEM - It was another difficult day in Winston-Salem for the North Carolina A&T men's basketball team.
The Aggies shot 34 percent from the floor in a 77-59 loss to Morgan State Thursday night at the 2011 MEAC Tournament played at Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
The Aggies are now just 1-3 in the MEAC Tournament since the tournament moved to nearby Winston-Salem in 2009. The Aggies have won just four tournament games in the last 10 years. ?
"We just don't shoot well in this building," said N.C. A&T head coach Jerry Eaves, who saw his team finish 15-17. ?"I thought we did the things we wanted to do offensively. We did what we wanted with our defense. We got steals, but we didn't convert those into points. We didn't hit layups. We went 1-for-2 from the free throw line. If we're doing the things we're supposed to do, we're up 15 or 20."
There were high hopes for this Aggies team. They came into the game with a solid post player in Thomas Coleman who played well against the Bears in two games this season. Ten days prior, the Aggies had a convincing win over the Bears at Corbett Sports Center. Plus, the Bears were on a three-game losing streak coming into the tournament.
But Morgan State started taking down N.C. A&T's high hopes early. After shooting 3-for-21 from 3-point range in Greensboro on Feb. 28, the Bears hit 4 of their first 6 threes. Once center Kevin Thompson established his presence as an offensive force with offensive rebounds and put backs, the Bears had control of the game.
Thompson finished with a game-high 24 points and 12 rebounds. Twenty of those points came in the first half as he went 7-for-7 from the floor.
"He put a couple of good moves on me in the post, but I felt like most of his points were off rebounds if I was trying to help," said Coleman. "I would go block a shot, and he would be there for a rebound. He just outplayed me today."
Despite the Bears hot start, the Aggies overcame an early 10-point deficit by going on an 11-0 run highlighted by an Austin Witter 3-pointer. The run also gave the Aggies a 22-21 advantage with 8:22 remaining in the first half.
Thompson scored 10 points over the final 7 ? minutes of the half, including going 4-for-4 from the free throw line to help the Bears take a 43-33 halftime lead. The Aggies never sliced the lead under double figures the rest of the way.
"You have to take your hat off to him," said Eaves. "He is not a good free throw shooter, but he went to the line and made them. Those are the things you do to win tournaments."
Coleman led the Aggies with 14 points and eight rebounds. His outstanding career came to an end with 1,285 points, 969 rebounds and 298 blocked shots. He leaves as the school's all-time leader in blocked shots and field goal percentage.
He was the Aggies lone senior, but he is a big loss considering he recorded 19 double-doubles this season. Marc Hill and Nic Simpson will provide Eaves with a senior backcourt. In order to change their fortunes in the tournament, the Aggies will rely heavily on their five-person junior class and the upside of current freshmen Thomas Cooper, Jeremy Underwood and Ray Lester.
