DALLAS, Texas – The North Carolina A&T women's basketball played its 2024-25 season debut, where it spent most of preseason practice in a practice facility. At game time, there were complications with Southern Methodist University's (SMU) home facility, Moody Coliseum.
Therefore, game officials moved the game to SMU's practice facility, where the Mustangs defeated the Aggies 77-64 on Monday evening. New to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC0), the Mustangs shot 47.1 percent for the game after shooting better than 60 percent in the second and third quarters.
Senior Jordyn Dorsey led the Aggies with 23 points, seven rebounds, and three assists, and graduate guard Maleia Bracone scored 13 points on 3-for-5 shooting from 3-point range. Dorsey's 23 tied a career-high. But the Aggies dropped to 0-1 on the young season after surrendering 48 points in the paint to the Mustangs. The Aggies did play without 6-foot-4 star center Chaniya Clark, and veteran guard D'Mya Tucker is still recovering from an injury she sustained late into the 2023-24 season.
Still, the Aggies looked to get an upset win as the 17th-ranked mid-major team in the country and the Coastal Athletic Association favorites. A 3-point bucket from Dorsey late in the first quarter gave the Aggies a 19-15 lead. Two Dorsey free throws with 26 seconds remaining in the first increased the Aggies lead to six.
Nya Robertson, however, gave the Mustangs some momentum going into the second quarter with a 3-pointer to cut A&T's lead to 21-18. That momentum did not last long as Bracone opened the second with a layup driving to the rim before netting a 3-point to push A&T's lead to six, 26-18. A&T secured its biggest lead of the night when Bracone scored on another three to give the Aggies a 29-20 lead with 8:16 remaining in the first half.
SMU would find its rhythm from inside its practice facility. The Mustangs scored the next 11 points to take a 31-29 lead. After freshman Rachel Douglas tied the score at 31 off a pass from Bracone, the Mustangs ran off another nine straight points, which included a 3-point play from Robertson.
A basket from Zanai Jones gave SMU a 40-31 lead before graduate transfer Aija James netted a three to pull the Aggies to within six, 40-34, with 15 seconds remaining in the first half. Two Robertson free throws gave the Mustangs a 42-34 halftime advantage. SMU's lead grew to 66-49 by the end of the third quarter as the Mustangs combined to shoot 63.6 percent (21-33) in the second and third quarters.
SMU took its biggest lead, 21 points, on a Kylie Marshall tip-in to give the Mustangs a 70-49 lead with eight minutes remaining in the game. The Aggies did get the lead down to 12, 72-60, with 3 ½ minutes remaining thanks to a Delaney Yarborough jumper in the paint, but without Clark, last season's CAA leader in rebounding, the Mustangs were able to out-rebound A&T 46-32 on the glass to get the win.
Robertson led the Mustangs with 21 points, and Jessica Peterson had 16 points and 11 rebounds. A&T returns to action in Texas with an 8 p.m. EST tip against Rice University in Houston.
