EAST GREENSBORO – Junior guard
Kameron Langley notched his second-straight double-double with 16 points and 12 assists to lift North Carolina A&T over Bethune-Cookman, 98-95, inside the Corbett Sports Center Saturday evening in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) men's basketball action.
Langley also hauled in six rebounds and swiped five steals. He is now 62 assists shy of breaking the school record for career assists.
"Any win is a good win," said acting head coach Will Jones who is 6-2 since taking over the program. "We have to continue to improve and continue to get better. We're giving up way too many points and we need to figure that out on the defensive end."
N.C. A&T moves to 9-12 overall and they stay near the top of the MEAC standings with a 5-1 mark. The Aggies have now won 19-straight games against conference opponents. Bethune-Cookman was the last MEAC team to beat the Aggies in Corbett on Feb. 27, 2017.
Senior guard
Andre Jackson poured in 18 points while junior guard
Kwe Parker posted a career-high 15. Senior forward
Ronald Jackson earned his 10th double-double on the season with 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Sophomore
Tyrone Lyons scored 13 points to round out double-figure scoring for the Aggies. The Aggies shot 11-21 from beyond the arc.
There were five lead changes and five ties in the last 10 minutes of the game. The game was tied at 78 with 5:53 remaining before Bethune's Wali Parks completed a rare four-point play. Langley responded for the Aggies, scoring four straight points to tie the game once again.
N.C. A&T was down by one with three minutes to go, but
Andre Jackson nailed a long three from the left wing to give the Aggies the lead for good. Despite their struggles at the foul line throughout the night, N.C. A&T shot 4-for-4 from the stripe in the last 15 seconds to ice the game.
Down 5-1 early, the Aggies went on an 8-0 run to take a four-point lead, 9-5. There were seven ties and seven lead changes in the first half. The biggest scoring run came courtesy of the Wildcats when they went on an 11-0 spurt over two minutes to claim their largest lead of the half, 35-29.
Free throw struggles from the Aggies kept Bethune in the game. N.C. A&T shot 14-for-26 from the stripe in the first half but found themselves leading 48-45.
MEAC preseason player of the year Cletrell Pope scored 17 points to go with 15 rebounds for the Wildcats. Isaiah Bailey led all scorers with 24 points.
Next up, the Aggies will welcome Delaware State to the Corbett Sports Center on Monday, Jan. 27 at 7:30 p.m. N.C. A&T beat the Hornets, 91-53, on Jan. 11 in Dover, Del.