WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Georgia was on their mind, but not anymore.
The North Carolina A&T women's basketball team can put behind them the disappointing third quarter it had a week and a half ago against the Power Five Georgia Bulldogs because the Aggies played a spectacular third quarter against the Power Five Wake Forest Demon Deacons, leading to a 56-51 win over the ACC school at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
A&T walked out of the locker room at halftime during its season opener at the University of Georgia with an eight-point lead. That lead evaporated as the Dogs outscored the Aggies 23-6 in the third quarter to go on to win by 12. That would not be the case Wednesday night.
Wake Forest and A&T fought to a 25-25 tie at halftime after the Aggies scored the final five points of the first half on a D'Mya Tucker putback and a Jordyn Dorsey 3-pointer. A&T then opened the second half with seven straight points as Maleia Bracone had a putback, Taila Davis found a cutting Chaniya Clark going to the basket for a layup and Dorsey netted another three.
The run forced the Deacs to call a timeout as the Aggies grabbed a 32-25 lead. After the timeout, the Aggies added another bucket to what was now a 14-0 run that extended into the second half. Alyssa Andrews ended the Aggies run with a 3-pointer, but the Aggies grew their lead to as many as 11 in the third quarter, 42-31, on two Bracone free throws. Madisyn Jordan's 3-pointer cut the Aggies lead to eight going into the fourth quarter.
"Our last road game that we played in the second half at Georgia, we were up, and we had a horrible third quarter. I told our ladies that was our Achilles heel, and we have to respond in this moment," said A&T head coach Tarrell Robinson about the Aggies strong second quarter. "I also tried to add my own thoughts to it and pressed a little bit. We tried to disrupt Wake Forest, and it worked in our favor because they weren't prepared for it."
Wake Forest did come up with some answers midway through the fourth quarter. The Deacs had a 5-0 run capped off by two Elise Williams free throws with 3:53 remaining to cut A&T's lead to 46-44. Tucker responded with a deuce, and Dorsey added a free throw to push A&T's lead to five before the Deacs scored four straight points on a Kaia Harrison layup and two more Williams free throws.
But Bracone, who had to play point guard for the Aggies in the fourth because Dorsey, the Aggies starting point was in foul trouble, made what perhaps was the play of the game. She dribbled past the Wake Forest defense and threaded a pass to Clark in a crowded area, where Clark was able to score and was fouled. After a pump of the fist from excitement, Clark completed the 3-point play to give the Aggies a 52-48 lead with 54 seconds to play.
The Aggies finished the upset at the free throw line as Nyah Willis hit 3 of 4 free throws to seal the win. Bracone led the Aggies with 16 points and 10 rebounds. It marked her third career double-double and her first as an A&T Aggie. Clark added 10 points and seven rebounds on 4-for-8 shooting. Tucker also scored in double figures with 10.
Andrews led the Deacs with 12 points. The Aggies out-rebounded Wake Forest 42-25 and outscored them 22-12 in the paint.
Wednesday marked the Aggies second straight win over the Demon Deacons after defeating Wake Forest 73-49 in a 2010 WNIT postseason game. The Aggies also had three wins over Wake Forest before becoming an official NCAA program in 1982, with two wins over the Deacs in 1978 and another in 1980.
Robinson earned his second win over a Power Five after winning at Clemson on Dec. 20, 2019. As an NCAA program, the Aggies now have two wins over Clemson and two over Wake Forest.
"Overall, for this university and our women's basketball program, this is a big win for us in the state of North Carolina because of recruiting," said Robinson, who improved to 52-22 (.703) all-time against in-state competition. "But I'm just proud of my young women. We want to keep getting better. We know where we were picked to finish in the CAA (Coastal Athletic Association), so we still have a lot to prove."
Apparently, Georgia is no longer on their minds.
