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SPORTS

A&T goes cold in loss at home

Tuesday, February 9, 2010
(Updated 7:25 am)

GREENSBORO — The fans that saw N.C. A&T shoot 56 percent in a win Saturday could only shake their heads in disbelief and wonder where that team was Monday night.

The Aggies' shooting woes returned Monday night in a 62-52 loss to Maryland Eastern-Shore. It also continued a stretch of games where A&T wins a game and then loses a game in the middle of its MEAC schedule.

"I thought we had turned the corner," said N.C. A&T coach Jerry Eaves. "I'm just very disappointed in the effort and the attitude. It's the coach's job to put players in position to take shots, but the players have to make the shots."

Some people might call the Aggies' shooting problems a slump, but Eaves said it is more than that. The Aggies (8-16, 4-6 MEAC) finished the game against Maryland Eastern-Shore (7-16, 5-5) shooting 30 percent and only 7-of-32 from 3-point range.

"We (practice) shooting more than any team in the country," Eaves said. "I've never seen a slump like this, but it really isn't a slump it's just that we have to grow up. Dwane's (Joshua) first four shots were open looks. Tavarus' (Alston) first three shots were wide open. We had a break and an easy bounce pass and we can't catch the ball. I've seen this exact same game before against Howard and Hampton."

Another departure from Saturday's victory was on the boards. The Aggies were outrebounded 43 to 36.

"We've got to put a body on people and be physical," Eaves said. "We do all the drills in practice, but we have to committed to it today."

Joshua, who had a team-high 15 points, came out with the hot hand in the second half, making two 3-pointers and converting a steal into a layup. He added a free throw to cut the lead to 37-36 with 14:35 to play.

The Hawks' Tyler Hines and Hillary Haley ignited a 10-0 run. Most of those points game on fast breaks after an A&T missed shot. Two free throws by the Aggies' Nic Simpson stopped the run, but Haley, who led all scorers with 20 points, countered with a 3-pointer and then Tim Burns scored on a layup off an errant pass by Tavraus Alston. And just like that, it was a 52-38 Hawks lead.

The Aggies finally cut the lead back to 58-50 with under two minutes to go, but the Hawks hit just enough of their free throws to keep the Aggies from building momentum. And then they missed three more 3-pointers.

MARYLAND-EASTERN SHORE (7-16) — Obame Obame 0-6 0-0 0, Haley 7-15 4-4 20, Hines 6-9 0-0 12, Bright 1-5 2-2 5, Burns 4-11 4-7 13, White 0-3 0-1 0, Berry 1-3 3-4 5, Dunston 3-4 0-0 7, Tucker 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-56 13-18 62.

N.C. A&T (8-16) — Witter 1-4 0-0 3, Johnson 4-11 0-0 8, Coleman 0-1 0-0 0, Alston 3-13 3-3 9, Joshua 5-15 2-5 15, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Hill 1-3 2-2 5, Simpson 3-7 4-4 12, Porter 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 17-56 11-14 52.

Halftime—Md.-Eastern Shore 26-25.
3-point goals—Md.-Eastern Shore 5-18 (Haley 2-9, Dunston 1-2, Burns 1-3, Bright 1-3, White 0-1), N.C. A&T 7-32 (Joshua 3-11, Simpson 2-5, Witter 1-3, Hill 1-3, Johnson 0-4, Alston 0-6).
Fouled out—Joshua.
Rebounds—Md.-Eastern Shore 43 (Hines 12), N.C. A&T 36 (Coleman 8).
Assists—Md.-Eastern Shore 12 (Burns 4), N.C. A&T 11 (Alston 5).
Total fouls—Md.-Eastern Shore 13, N.C. A&T 15.
A—4,034.

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