North Carolina A&T Aggies
MEAC (19-16, 8-8)
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North Carolina A&T was a middle of the pack team in the MEAC. They finished with an 8-8 conference record. Losing four of their last six heading into the conference tournament, the expectations were relatively low for the Aggies and first year coach Cy Alexander. They were helped a bit by some upsets elsewhere in the bracket, but NC A&T pulled off a huge upset of their own when they beat 15-1 North Carolina Central. But from there they still had to take care of business against Delaware State and Morgan State and that is exactly what they did.
Big Wins: 12/19 Eastern Kentucky (78-67), 3/04 Savannah State (59-57), 3/13 vs North Carolina Central (55-42)
Bad Losses: 11/12 Utah Valley (55-64), 12/30 at CSU Bakersfield (52-60), 2/16 South Carolina State (70-72)
Coach: Cy Alexander (1 year at North Carolina A&T)
Why They Can Surprise:
The Aggies win games with their defense. At least they can stay close and hope for the best in the end. The solid defense is a team effort, but much of the credit goes to 6-8 senior Austin Witter. Witter blocks about three shots per game. He is not a big bodied player, but he is a great athlete with amazing defensive timing. His presence often forces the opposition to shoot from outside and that is why the Aggies allow the opposition to connect on just 38.4 percent of their attempts from the floor. That ranks 14th in the nation. Adrian Powell, Lamont Middleton and Jean Louisme are solid defenders on the perimeter. Those three are also the top scorers for North Carolina A&T. Powell is a very tough matchup for most teams. He can shoot over smaller defenders and slip past bigger defenders. Louisme is pretty much a spot up shooter, but that is about all he does offensively. When his shot is falling, Louisme can put up points in a hurry. Bruce Beckford could be the x-factor for the Aggies. He is often overlooked, yet the forward is very capable of scoring and helping out on the glass.
Why They Can Disappoint:
But by the numbers this is not a very good team. They consistently get outrebounded. Witter may be a great athlete, but he may not be tough enough to win rebounding battles against strong competition. But even if Coach Alexander’s team gets beat on the glass, they can still hang around. The key will be, as it often is, making shots. Powell and Louisme will have to knock down shots and Middleton will have to drive and dish effectively and help create good looks for his teammates. But Middleton must also keep the team under control. Turnovers have been a huge problem for the Aggies. It is not Middleton’s fault, yet he must take over and keep the tempo slow and steady and make sure everybody takes good shots and takes care of the ball.
Probable Starters:
Lamont Middleton, Junior, Guard, 12.4 ppg, 2.3 apg, 4.1 rpg
Jean Louisme, Senior, Guard, 9.4 ppg, 1.6 apg
Adrian Powell, Senior, Forward, 12.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg
Bruce Beckford, Freshman, Forward, 7.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg
Austin Witter, Senior, Forward, 6.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 3.0 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Jeremy Underwood, Junior, Guard, 6.1 ppg, 1.9 apg
DaMetrius Upchurch, Senior, Forward, 4.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 61.8 (296th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 61.7 (55, 4)
Field-Goal Percentage: 39.2 (329, 10)
Field-Goal Defense: 38.4 (14, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.7 (210, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 29.2 (290, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 65.3 (289, 6)
Rebound Margin: -1.5 (235, 8)
Assists Per Game: 11.3 (284, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 15.0 (289, 7)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
No Tournament History
*all team stats through 3/10
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
