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GREENSBORO — N.C. A&T freshman Austin Witter didn't have much time to enjoy his key performance in the Aggies' 65-56 victory over Middle Tennessee State on Monday night.

Witter and his teammates had a bus to catch. At 4:30 a.m.

Dwane Johnson finished with a game-high 18 points and eight rebounds off the bench, and Witter scored eight of his 11 during a critical stretch of the second half as the Aggies (3-2) beat Middle Tennessee (2-3) in a tuneup for A&T's toughest non-conference stretch of the season.

Senior point guard Tavarus Alston shot 4-for-8 from 3-point range and scored 14 points, and Robert Johnson scored all seven of his points in a game-sealing run.

A few hours after the game, A&T caught a bus to the Raleigh airport. The Aggies will play three games at three sites in four days more than 1,500 miles away from the cozy Corbett Center. A&T plays Wednesday at Texas-El Paso, then Thanksgiving day at New Mexico State in Las Cruces, N.M., then heads back to Beaumont, Texas, for a game Saturday at Lamar.

When it's over, the Aggies will cover more than 3,300 miles by planes and buses.

"It's going to be fun making the trip, playing games on the road. It's good experience," Witter said. "But then you think, 'I've got to go at 4:30 in the morning and fly across the country and practice right away.' It's just part of college basketball."

So, too, is a freshman learning his role. For Witter, a 6-foot-8 wing player, that role is instant offense. He came into the game with A&T clinging to a 33-31 lead, and he hit an open 3-pointer from the corner to push the lead back to five. He hit another shot from the same spot on the Aggies' next trip, and his layup with 13:06 left made it 44-32.

Eight points in 21/2 minutes.

"Coach keeps telling me to be ready on the bench and to keep shooting when I'm out there," Witter said. "It's my job to pick-and-pop and bring energy onto the court."

Middle Tennessee made one last push, cutting the lead to 46-45 with 8:55 left.

Then it was Johnson's turn to stretch the lead. The senior forward from Dudley, who couldn't buy a basket earlier, scored all seven of his points in a 13-4 run that put A&T ahead by 10 with 1:34 left. Johnson scored twice on transition layups, and hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key. He finished 1-for-7 from behind the arc.

"He hit the big one," A&T coach Jerry Eaves said. "... We want to shoot the ball. We're trying to shoot perimeter shots as fast as we can."

A&T led for most of a ragged first half, putting on full-court pressure defense whenever possible. The half-court scheme was simple enough: Throw it into the low post or penetrate, drawing extra defenders inside, then passing back out to open shooters on the perimeter.

It worked. After DaMetrius Upchurch hit 1-of-2 free throws, the Aggies next 18 points came on six 3-point baskets — three in a row by Alston, the senior guard from Smith.

A&T shot just 1-for-8 inside the 3-point arc in the first half. Thomas Coleman's layup off an inside move with 7:43 left in the half accounted for the Aggies only two-point basket in the first 20 minutes.

Contact Jeff Mills at 373-7024 or jeff.mills@news-record.com

MIDDLE TENNESSEE (2-3) — Emanuel 1-5 0-0 2, Williams 1-4 0-1 2, Washington III 5-11 5-8 17, Haddock 2-6 0-0 5, Hudson 1-2 0-0 2, O'Neil 1-4 5-6 7, Little 1-1 0-0 3, Murray 0-0 0-0 0, Sulton 2-7 3-4 7, Ottley 0-2 0-0 0, Gallman 3-14 2-2 11. Totals 17-56 15-21 56.

N.C. A&T (3-2) — Upchurch 1-1 1-2 3, Johnson 3-12 0-0 7, Coleman 3-4 2-4 8, Alston 5-11 0-0 14, Simpson 1-6 0-0 3, Joshua 5-11 5-6 18, Hill 0-3 1-5 1, Witter 4-5 0-0 11, Porter 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-54 9-17 65.

Halftime—N.C. A&T 27-24.
3-point goals—Middle Tennessee 7-25 (Gallman 3-12, Washington III 2-7, Little 1-1, Haddock 1-2, Emanuel 0-3), N.C. A&T 12-33 (Alston 4-8, Witter 3-4, Joshua 3-7, Simpson 1-5, Johnson 1-7, Hill 0-2).
Fouled out—None.
Rebounds—Middle Tennessee 45 (Sulton 8), N.C. A&T 32 (Joshua 8).
Assists—Middle Tennessee 5 (Washington III 3), N.C. A&T 18 (Hill 7).
Total fouls—Middle Tennessee 20, N.C. A&T 14.
A—1,894.