EL PASO, TEXAS – Crazy. Crazy. Crazy. The battle of the Aggies turned into a crazy consolation game during the final day of the WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational on Thursday. Nevertheless, the New Mexico State University Aggies emerged victorious from the wildness over the North Carolina A&T Aggies, 85-76 at the Haskins Center.
Senior Demetric Horton led the Aggies with 23 points and eight rebounds on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range. Horton earned all-tournament honors after posting a combined 37 points, 10 rebounds and four steals on 13-for-22 shooting from the field and 8-for-13 shooting from 3-point range in two games.
"He plays great and has always been a steady rock for us," said A&T interim coach Phillip Shumpert. "Whether we need shooting, rebounding, or assists, he can provide it. He is truly a versatile player. He had a great swing through this 12-day road trip."
But it would take Horton and strong 3-point shooting from sophomore guard Kam Woods, senior forward Jeremy Robinson and junior guard Marcus Watson to overcome a 23-3 hole the NCATAggies found themselves in after the first 6 ½ minutes of the game.
By the 10:12 mark of the first half, a Horton 3-pointer had the Aggies down nine, 25-16. Four minutes later, Woods netted a three to cut NMSU's lead to 29-26. An NMSU offensive foul led to a bucket from Robinson to move the Aggies to within one at 29-28.
But NMSU found its rhythm again and orchestrated a 10-1 run highlighted by two Kyle Feit 3-pointers to push NMSU's lead back to double figures at 39-29 with 3:10 remaining in the first half. NMSU maintained that margin as they went into the locker room leading 46-36 at halftime.
NMSU increased its lead over the first three minutes of the second half as Marchelus Avery's layup gave the NMSU Aggies a 52-39 lead. But the Aggies brought the craziness back into the game by rallying again.
Threes from Horton and Robinson cut the deficit to seven before Woods hit two free throws to get A&T to within five with 15 ½ minutes remaining in the game. Two minutes later, a Kyle Duke layup cut NMSU's lead to two at 53-51. After Doctor Bradley's 3-point play pushed NMSU's lead to five, Watson scored five straight points on a 3-pointer and two free throws to tie the game at 56 with 12:19 remaining.
"It tells me a lot about their toughness," Shumpert said of the Aggies multiple comebacks. "They went on a big run early. I took my starters out and put my bench in, and the bench provided somewhat of a spark. Then I put my starters back in, and they fought. Throughout this long road trip, guys have fought, and even though we didn't win, the guys still had a good effort for 40 minutes."
But the game was not finished being crazy. NMSU responded mightily with an 11-0 run to push its lead to 67-56 before A&T rallied again. A Horton 3-pointer sparked a 9-0 A&T run. Feit ended that spurt with a 3-pointer, followed by Issa Muhammad's layup to give NMSU a 72-65 lead with 6:37 remaining.
Sophomore Love Bettis appeared to start another A&T run with a 3-pointer to make it 72-68. But the NCATAggies could get no closer over the final 5 ½ minutes of the game.
A&T lost its third straight to drop to 5-8. Watson chipped in with 20 points on 3-for-8 shooting from three. Robinson had 13 points and six rebounds, and Woods finished with 13 points on 3-for-10 shooting from three. The Aggies were 15-for-37 from three as a team. Avery and Xavier Pinson had 20 points apiece for NMSU.
A&T will turn its attention to playing a conference opener in its third different conference in three years as they travel to Boston to face Northeastern at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 29.
"We're 0-0 again now that non-conference is over. We've got to get ready for Northeastern. We'll still be on the road, which puts us on the road for the entire month of December. Luckily, this 12-day road trip has them battle-tested to go out and try to get a W against Northeastern."
