Greensboro, NC—Bruce Beckford scored all 16 of his points in the second half, including the go-ahead free throw with 11 seconds remaining to give North Carolina A&T a thrilling 66-63 come-from behind win over Howard University in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's game at the Corbett Sports Arena. The loss snapped a five game-game win streak for the Bison (5-3, 0-1 in the MEAC) while the Aggies (3-7, 1-0 in the MEAC) extended their current win streak to three.
James "J-Byrd" Daniel, III was able to get a shot off, but it missed and the Aggies were able to grab the miss and secure the victory with two free throws and close out the game.
"It was a heck of a game in a great atmosphere," said Howard head coach Kevin Nickelberry. "They made now more play than we did and that was the difference in the game. J-Byrd had a great look for the win, but unfortunately it did not go in. I'm comfortable with him taking that shot every time."
The two teams, who have met 101 times on the hardwood, engaged in a seesaw battle through the first 20 minutes. Ahmed Abdullah (11 points) led the Aggies while Daniel tallied eight points as the two teams were deadlocked at 31 at intermission.
The Bison appeared to take control in the second half, bolting out to a 10-point lead before North Carolina A&T rallied on the scoring of Beckford, who was four of eight from the field and 8 of 10 from the free throw line.
The Bison again rode the scoring of Daniel, who poured in 20 of his game-high 28 in the second half, including a perfect 10 for 10 from the charity stripe in the second stanza.
The leading scorer in the country at 28 points per game, Daniel scored nine of his team's last 11 points, including two free throws that tied the game before Beckford's free throw. But the Bison got little else from the rest of the team as no other player scored in double figures. Marcel Boyd scored nine points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Damon Collins contributed eight points, three coming in the second half.
Howard, which came into the game, averaging 81 points per game, shot a season low 30 percent for the game but won the rebounding battle, 45-39.
North Carolina A&T had the advantage in points in the paint (32-24), points off turnovers (17-9) and bench points (17-9).
Daniel, who is also one of the leaders in the country in steals, added three to go along with 4 assists.
The Aggies were led by Beckford with 16 and Sam Hunt, Abdullah and Khary Doby, all with 13.
Howard will try to get back on the winning track when it travels to Durham, NC to take on the Eagles of North Carolina Central on Monday at 7:30.
"We have to respond to this setback and get ready for a tough North Carolina Central team on Monday. I'm confident we will bounce back."
