Box Score
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. -- Lamont Middleton scored a game-high 33 points, and Richaud Pack added 22 points, to lead North Carolina A&T of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference to an 85-78 men's basketball victory past Longwood University on Friday evening at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey. The contest was tied at halftime, 35-35, but the Aggies (2-4) led by as many as 18 points in the second half, before a late rally by the Lancers (2-5) fell just short at the end. Senior captain Tristan Carey/Colonial Beach led Longwood with 20 points, while sophomore captain Lucas Woodhouse/Greenlawn, New York added a season-high 19 points and classmate Karl Ziegler/Annandale tied his career high with 17 points in the third game of the Barclays Center Classic presented by Continental Tire. Longwood will complete its competition in the four-game exempt tournament with a game against Mississippi Valley State of the Southwestern Athletic Conference on Saturday afternoon, November 30 at 4:30 p.m. in West Long Branch, New Jersey.
"We have a bad habit of not being ready to start the second half and we've got to change that," said first-year Longwood head coach Jayson Gee. "I have to go into my bag of tricks and figure something out for us to start that second half better."
Longwood fell behind 6-0 at the start as Middleton made two quick three-point field goals less than two minutes into the contest. The Lancers responded with an 8-1 run to lead 8-7 at 15:53, getting five points from Woodhouse, including a three-pointer, and three free throws from Ziegler. Longwood was ahead 12-9 at 13:42 following two free throws by freshman Darrion Allen/Pompano Beach, Florida, but North Carolina A&T answered with five points from Middleton to lead 14-12 at 13:06. Another three-pointer by Woodhouse had the Lancers in front 17-15 at 10:41, before the Aggies used a 14-4 run with seven points from Pack to lead 29-21 with 7:15 on the first-half clock. Longwood, however, battled back with a 14-6 run to close the period and forge into the halftime tie at 35-35. Four different players scored for the Lancers, including four points each from Allen and Ziegler.
North Carolina A&T took control to start the second half, outscoring Longwood 23-9, to lead 58-44 at 12:35. A quick 6-2 run had the Lancers within 60-50 at 10:35, but the Aggies ran off eight-straight points to take their largest lead at 68-50 with 8:44 remaining. Middleton scored six of the points, including another three-pointer. Longwood, however, refused to quit and battled back into the contest behind Carey, who made three three-pointers during a 19-9 run, to pull within 77-69 at 4:18. Woodhouse and Ziegler each went 1-2 at the free throw line, before a layup by Woodhouse made it 79-73 with 2:12 on the clock. It was as close as the Lancers would get, though, as North Carolina A&T secured the outcome with 6-8 free throws over the final 1:06.
Carey led Longwood with his team-high 20 points, including 16 in the second half, making 4-10 three-pointers. Carey moved into 18th place on the all-time scoring list with 1,046 career points, and is now tied for fifth in career three-pointers (157) -- with J.B. Neil '95. Woodhouse finished with a season-high 19 points for the Lancers, including 11 in the first half, making 3-7 three-pointers and adding a game-high six assists. Ziegler matched his career high with 17 points, making 13-16 free throws, and grabbing eight rebounds. Allen contributed 10 points and three assists off the bench, while redshirt-junior captain Jeylani Dublin/Brooklyn, New York added seven points and a game-high nine rebounds off the bench. Longwood shot 44% (24-55) from the field, including 39% (7-18) on three-pointers and 74% (23-31) at the free throw line.
Middleton led North Carolina A&T with his game-high 33 points, making 5-11 three-pointers and 16-20 free throws, adding a game-high four steals. Pack had 22 points for the Aggies, including 11-11 free throws, while Jeremy Underwood contributed 11 points. NCAT shot 41% (20-49) from the field, including 30% (7-23) on three-pointers and 78% (38-49) at the line. The contest witnessed 56 personal fouls whistled against the two teams, who combined to shoot 80 free throws.
Longwood and North Carolina A&T were meeting for just the third time in the sport, and the Aggies now lead the series, 2-1.
