GREENSBORO (December 2, 2016) – North Carolina A&T had trouble keeping North Dakota State off the glass Friday night in an 85-67 loss at Corbett Sports Center. The Bison, who defeated the Aggies in Fargo, N.D., last season, outrebounded the Aggies 47-25 in the Aggies' home arena.
The Bison's rebounding edge included 20 offensive rebounds and a 21-9 advantage in second chance points. Junior guard Sam Hunt did have 20 points on 6-for-12 shooting from 3-point range after not playing against the Bison last season. Graduate Aaron Scales and freshman Raymon Pratt had 10 points apiece.
But overall it was a night where the Aggies (1-6) never really found their rhythm. The Bison (6-3) grabbed seven offensive rebounds in the first seven minutes of the game. When Khy Kabellis hit a 3-pointer at the 13:01 mark of the first half, the Bison were off to an 18-3 start. Back-to-back layups from junior point guard Austin Williams got the Aggies to within 11 but a Tyson Ward 3-pointer put the Bison ahead 21-7.
NDSU's lead grew to as much as 17 in the first half. Hunt would get hot toward the end of the half as he hit three 3-pointers in the final four minutes of the first half, but the Aggies still trailed 47-30 at halftime. The Aggies did inch to within 13 a few times in the second half, but when Carlin Dupree hit two free throws with 9:21 to play, the Bison had their biggest lead at 64-44.
Five Bison scored in double figures led by Dexter Werner who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Kabellis and Ward had 15 apiece. The Aggies will not get a lot of rest before having to travel to South Bend, Ind., to face the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame at 5 p.m., Sunday.
