EAST GREENSBORO – Before the game Saturday, North Carolina A&T honored three women's basketball seniors. Graduate and Georgia Tech transfer Chanin Scott and Seton Hall transfers Deja Winters and Jayla Jones-Pack each had a special video presentation before tip-off.
Those same three players then stepped up huge by combining for 54 points to lead the Aggies to a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) win in women's hoops over arch-rival North Carolina Central, 85-54, at Corbett Sports Center.
It is the Aggies (11-2, 9-1 MEAC) second margin of victory above 30 over the Eagles this season.
The win also clinches the MEAC Southern Division for A&T. It is the fourth time the Aggies have clinched a MEAC regular-season title under head coach Tarrell Robinson. As the top seed out of the south, the Aggies will get a bye into the MEAC tournament semifinals and need two wins to earn the MEAC title in Norfolk, Va., March 10-13.
The Aggies have one regular-season game remaining, which is 2 p.m., Sunday against NCCU at #ClubCorbett.
"It's huge, especially finding out that you show up in the semis and then you play in the finals," Robinson said. "That's what I've been telling them. If you can do your job, you put yourself in position to go to the NCAA tournament."
Scott led the Aggies with a game-high 23 points and added five rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks. The other honoree on Saturday, Winters, added 20 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals on 7-for-13 shooting from the floor and 4-for-10 shooting from the 3-point range.
The final honoree, Jones-Pack, celebrated her senior night with 11 points, eight rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block.
"I really challenged them (the seniors) after the Norfolk State's loss," Robinson said. "I thought Chanin played okay, and Deja and Jayla didn't show up. I bet that was the reason why we lost. I wanted them to one, take ownership of it.
This is their season and their team, so they're expected to show these talented young freshmen the way. I'm really proud of them, proud of their effort and proud of their response to my challenge."
Sophomore guard Jada Smith scored 12 points and added three steals and two rebounds on 5-for-7 shooting.
The Aggies controlled the game for most of the afternoon as Scott caught an alley-oop pass from Darks to score on a layup as the buzzer went off to end the first half to give the Aggies a 37-23 lead.
The Eagles (3-9, 1-4 MEAC) then came out of the locker room with their best spurt of the night. After a Scott layup gave the Aggies a 41-29 lead, the Eagles went on a 7-0 run to cut N.C. A&T's lead to five, with 5:54 remaining in the third quarter.
The Aggies put the clamps on from there. The Aggies, who have the No. 1 defense in the MEAC, did not allow another point in the quarter. The Aggies, who have the No. 1 offense in the MEAC, ended the quarter with 19 straight points to take a 60-36 lead.
N.C. A&T's run ended with a Winters 3-point play and a Darks 3-pointer. NCCU never recovered. The Aggies are now 3-0 against the Eagles this season.
The Aggies opened the game with a 12-5 lead only to see the Eagles cut it to 15-12. Scott helped the Aggies end the first quarter on a 6-0 run as she posted four points during the run to give the Aggies a 21-12 advantage.
The Aggies began the second quarter scoring the first six points to increase the lead to 27-12. NCCU rallied with nine straight points as a Madalyn Anderson 3-pointer cut the Aggies lead to 27-21 with 5:41 to play in the first half.
Similar to the third quarter, the Aggies responded emphatically. An 8-0 run highlighted by a Winters 3-pointer put the Aggies ahead by double-figures again with 1:10 to play in the half. The Eagles scored again on two Anissa Rivera free throws before Scott's buzzer-beater to end the half.
Rivera led the Eagles with 10 points and 15 rebounds.
