NORFOLK, Va. – North Carolina A&T used a huge fourth quarter for its 10th consecutive game after a 65-60 win at Norfolk State at Echols Hall in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) women's basketball.
The Aggies entered the third quarter trailing 46-40 but outscored the Spartans 25-14 in the final quarter.
"We knew it was going to be a tough game here in Norfolk," A&T coach Tarrell Robinson said.
"Playing a team three times and winning all three is hard in a non-COVID season. We're fortunate to come out with this victory today, but the one thing we can always count on when we're not making shots is our defense. I'm glad we were able to have the adversity we had today on the road and find a way to come out with the win."
N.C. A&T improved to 10-1 overall and 7-1 in the MEAC. Junior guard Jasmen Walton and graduate guard Chanin Scott each recorded 19 points. Walton shot 6-for-12 from the floor with five rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block.
Scott shot 8-for-15 from the floor with five rebounds, three assists and a steal.
Senior forward Deja Winters added 11 points and three steals, while senior forward Jayla Jones-Pack added a team-high eight rebounds and two blocks. Freshman guard Sean Kelly Darks added six points, six rebounds, two assists and three steals.
NSU (2-7, 1-4) led 46-33 with 2:49 remaining in the third quarter. The Aggies scored the next seven points, capped off by a 3-pointer from freshman D'Mya Tucker to go into the fourth quarter down by six, 46-40.
Nearly three minutes into the fourth quarter, the Aggies took the lead, 51-50, on a Winters 3-pointer. Two Walton layups extended the Aggies lead to 55-50 before the Spartans responded with five straight points of their own to tie the game at 55 with 3:25 remaining.
The two teams swapped 3-point field goals before Jones-Pack gave the Aggies a 60-58 lead on a layup with 2:18 to play. Mangela Ngandjui tied the game at 60 for the Spartans with a jump shot with 1:54 on the clock. NSU would not score again.
After a missed Aggie 3-pointer, Scott came down with the rebound and got fouled. She made the first one but missed the second to give the Aggies a point lead, with 1:31 remaining.
A missed jumper and a blocked shot by Jones-Pack gave the Aggies a chance to close the game. But A&T missed a layup giving the ball back to the Spartans.
A Winters steal led to a foul where Winters went to the line with 13 seconds to play and hit two free throws to increase the Aggies lead to 63-60. After a Spartan timeout, they missed a layup with six seconds on the clock. Two seconds later, Walton stepped to the line and secured the game by knocking down two more free throws for the Aggies.
The win likely puts A&T in position for the southern division's top seed at next month's MEAC tournament in Norfolk.
A&T showed they could handle playing on the road. They led 15-11 after the first quarter.
Norfolk State started the second quarter by scoring the first seven points to take an 18-15 lead with 7:49 remaining in the half. But the Aggies outscored the Spartans 9-2 over the next four minutes, going 5-for-6 at the line during the spurt to take a 24-20 lead.
The Spartans scored the next 12 points to take an eight-point lead, 32-24, with 54 seconds to go in the half. Walton hit a 3-pointer at the 27-second mark to cut the lead to five points, 32-27. A Spartan layup with a second left gave NSU a 34-27 halftime lead.
Ngandjui led the Spartans with a 16-point, 14-rebound double-double.
The Aggies stay in Norfolk for a second-game against the Spartans Sunday at 2 p.m. before returning home for the final two regular-season games of the season next weekend against North Carolina Central.
