Johnathon BackstromN.C. Central University Men’s Basketball team fell short of a comeback at last Friday’s home opener against the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs. They are now 0-3 after the 88-82 loss.
The Eagles found themselves down in the early minutes of the first half. The slow start prompted NCCU Head Coach LeVelle Moton to call a timeout.
As the game went on, Eagle guard Josh Smith gave the team the spark they needed with 13 first-half points.
Eagle guard Dionte Johnson was another tremendous help, contributing to the ball movement given their limited rotations of guards due to injuries. The Eagles then went into halftime down 47-38.
Gardner-Webb came out in the second half attacking the paint, resulting in 58 total paint points. It was a struggle for NCCU to stop them, as they were out-rebounded 23-10.
The Eagles at one point were down by 16, but with a big performance coming from Smith, Johnson and NCCU guard Po’Boigh King, they attempted the comeback.
“DJ [Johnson] been playing so careful, again he’s a transfer so I’m getting to know him, super kid and fights for me. We’re asking him to do something he’s never done before,” Moton said.
“You got to play the game scotch free and with no remorse, which in the second half I felt like he really did that. So I guess one of the positives was being able to see him flourish in that role because we haven’t seen much of it.”
NCCU could not complete the comeback even though they outscored Gardner-Webb in the second half 44-41. The Bulldogs finished the game shooting 70% from the field.
“No one should ever come in your gym and shoot 70%,” Moton said.
NCCU’s points leaders were Smith who finished with 21 points, Johnson who finished with 16 and King who scored 12.
“We needed communication on defense, and we weren’t playing as hard,” Smith said. “We needed to play harder in my opinion.”
The Eagles will travel to South Carolina to compete at the Rock Hill Classic against Georgia-Southern, William & Mary, and Winthrop throughout the weekend.
