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WINSTON-SALEM — Dreams of a MEAC tournament run by N.C. A&T were quickly put to rest Wednesday night as Morgan State dispatched the Aggies 84-57 in a men's quarterfinal at Joel Coliseum.

The Bears established their inside game early with center Kevin Thompson, who finished with a game-high 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Thompson was aided by the slashing and shooting of Troy Smith, who had six points during an early 13-0 run that gave Morgan (25-9) all the momentum it would need.

The Bears also forced the Aggies (11-22) out of anything they wanted to do offensively, keeping them from getting near the basket and making outside shots difficult.

"They were just more physical than us and kept us from getting into our offense," said A&T coach Jerry Eaves. "They kept their bodies on us and forced us outside the 3-point line. The last time we played them, we were playing around the free-throw line."

Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman said his team was as prepared for the game with the Aggies has it has been all season. He said they were motivated by a quote from A&T in the paper about wanting to take on the Bears.

"I thought the guys were extremely focused at the shoot-around, the most focused I've seen them all year," Bozeman said. "This wasn't going to be a situation where the guys were going to relax. We wanted to make sure we put in the work and were prepared."

Morgan's leading scorer and the MEAC's player of the year, Reggie Holmes, was quiet for much of the first half as the Aggies concentrated on shutting him down. But with the way Thompson and Smith were playing, it didn't matter.

It was the final game for A&T seniors Tavarus Alston, Robert Johnson, Dwane Joshua and James Porter.

"It's tough going out with a game like this," Johnson said. "I've enjoyed playing here."

"Robert and Tavarus are a part of the piece of the puzzle that helped turn the program around," Eaves said. "The future is in front of them."

N.C. A&T (11-22) — Alston 4-10 2-5 11, Williams 1-3 0-0 3, Coleman 2-5 0-1 4, Witter 1-1 0-0 2, Johnson 0-2 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-2 0, Buck 0-0 2-4 2, Joshua 1-4 2-4 4, Hill 4-7 0-0 9, Simpson 4-13 6-6 17, Upchurch 1-1 0-0 2, Porter 1-5 1-2 3. Totals 19-51 13-24 57.

MORGAN STATE (25-9) — Holmes 5-12 6-7 17, Thomas 2-3 0-0 4, T.Smith 7-9 2-2 17, Thompson 10-16 0-0 20, Ali 0-1 0-0 0, Braswell 0-1 0-0 0, Johnson 1-2 0-0 2, D.Smith 1-2 0-1 3, Davis 3-6 2-2 9, Jackson 4-10 0-2 9, Stokes 1-1 0-0 2, Long 0-0 0-0 0, Foote 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 34-63 11-16 84.

N.C. A&T 22 35 — 57
Morgan State 46 38 — 84

Percentages—N.C. A&T (FG .373, FT .542), Morgan State (FG .540, FT .688)
3-point goals—N.C. A&T 6-22 (Simpson 3-10, Hill 1-2, Williams 1-3, Alston 1-4, Johnson 0-1, Joshua 0-2), Morgan State 5-16 (Davis 1-1, D.Smith 1-1, Jackson 1-3, T.Smith 1-3, Holmes 1-6, Braswell 0-1, Thomas 0-1).
Fouled out—None.
Rebounds—N.C. A&T 26 (Porter 4), Morgan State 43 (Thompson 16).
Assists—N.C. A&T 7 (Buck, Coleman 2), Morgan State 20 (Thompson 6).
Blocks—N.C. A&T 2 (Simpson, Coleman), Morgan State 2 (Thompson 2).
Turnovers—N.C. A&T 15 (Coleman 5, Witter 2), Morgan State 13 (D.Smith 3, Davis 2, Thompson 2, Stokes 2).
Steals—N.C. A&T 5 (Coleman 2), Morgan State Steals: 6 (Holmes 4).
Total fouls—N.C. A&T 14, Morgan State 22.
A—na.
Officials—Everette Summers, Steve Anderson, Fred Williams.