Christopher AmadasunMcDougald-McLendon Arena was rocking as the N.C Central Eagles handled business against the Howard Bison with a final score of 80-65 on Feb. 24.
The game which came after heated talks around the Eagle’s nest surrounding Alumni voicing their displeasure of lack of attendance to prior MEAC men’s basketball games.
The students came out in droves as the student section and upper bowl were full of students making McDougald Mclendon Arena and absolute madhouse.
“I thought the crowd was as energetic as I seen them all year,” Head Coach Levelle Moton announced after the game. “I am extremely grateful for the students and fans that cheered us on and got us over the hump.”
Taylor Ford, a current N.C. Central student, raved about the turnout.
“It feels like 2017 all over again,” Ford said. “back when nobody could beat us at McDougald.”
The game started on a sour note as the Eagles found themselves trailing the Bison 16-6, with 12 minutes left in the first half of play.
During the first half, the Eagles also struggled from three-point range as they shot a horrendous 12 percent from the field.
The Eagles eventually clawed their way back into the game before the halftime whistle as they took a 34-27 lead into the locker room.
Redshirt junior C.J. Keyser was a huge reason the Eagles fought their way back into the game as he came off the bench dishing 12 points and 5 huge instrumental assists.
Evan Clayborne, a Redshirt junior also had a strong game coming off the bench as he was a huge spark plug for the Eagles as he racked up 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 key steals that lead to huge dunks on the fastbreak.
Once the second half got underway, the Eagles began to pull away and show why they are currently in contention for another MEAC championship.
The Eagles shot over 60 percent from the three-point line during the second half as their offense was too much to handle for the Howard Bison.
The Eagles finished the game putting up 80 points, which was the teams highest scoring total since middle January
graduating senior Jibri Blount led the Eagles in scoring on the night with a double-double performance putting up 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Blount was followed by junior guard Devin Palmer, who dished out 15 points and 4 rebounds.
The struggling Bison fall to (2-26,1-13 MEAC) as they look to find any kind of momentum to end their season on a positive note.
“We got a long way to go, and a short time to get there,” Moton said when he was asked about the road ahead for the team. “We got a tough trip ahead and the last three games are going to be critical.”
The Eagles climb to (14-13, 10-3 MEAC), as the MEAC regular-season champions might be crowned on the final day of the season on March 5.
The North Carolina A&T Aggies made the trip to Durham yesterday evening for a winner takes all game at McDougald-Mclendon Arena, a game that was televised on ESPN.
More details pertaining to N.C. Central’s game against North Carolina A&T will be available soon.
