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NC Central 77, Texas-Pan American 71

January 14, 2009

DURHAM, N.C. – Four Eagles scored in double figures to lead North Carolina Central University to a 77-71 win over the University of Texas-Pan American on Wednesday night inside McLendon-McDougald Gymnasium in Durham, N.C.

The victory was the first of the season for NCCU, playing in its second campaign as a Division I program.

NCCU freshman guard Jamar Briscoe poured in a game-high 21 points, including 16 in the first half. Sophomore guard Vincent Davis added 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor, including a perfect 3-for-3 night from three-point land.

Senior guard Bryan Ayala did a little of everything for the Eagles, tallying 12 points, six steals, five assists and two rebounds in 38 minutes of action. Sophomore guard Michael Glasker scored a career-high 14 points, including 11 in the second stanza, while connecting on 12-of-15 from the charity stripe. Freshman forward Nick Chasten contributed a steady eight points and team-best six rebounds for NCCU.

UTPA (5-11) was paced by senior forward Emmanuel Jones with team-highs of 15 points and eight boards. Sophomore guard Nick Weiermiller added 14 points, seven assists and two steals for the Broncs.

NCCU shot a blistering 63 percent from the field and made its first five three-point attempts in the opening 14 minutes of play to jump out to a 33-17 advantage.

UTPA scored five unanswered points in the final minute of the first half to trim the Eagles’ lead to 38-28 at intermission.

NCCU increased the margin to 21 points on two occasions, including a 69-48 cushion on a Joshua Worthy layup with 5:31 remaining in the contest.

That’s when things got interesting.

The Broncs scored 13 consecutive points to start a 21-3 run, as UTPA narrowed the gap to a one-possession game at 72-69 with 26 seconds left.

At that point, Glasker knocked down a pair of free throws, followed by Ayala’s sixth steal, and then two more free throws by Glasker to seal the six-point victory.

“It’s great,” said Glasker about the team’s first win of the season. “It feels like I am back at high school celebrating back-to-back state championships.”

When asked what was the difference between Wednesday’s victory and the Dec. 7, 2008, six-point loss to UTPA, Glasker gave credit to senior captain Ayala. “His leadership and ability to keep the team calm in pressure situations made a big difference tonight,” Glasker said. “Plus, he made some big defensive plays for us down the stretch.”

As a team, NCCU shot 45.8 percent from the field (22-of-48), including a season-best 7-of-11 (63.6 percent) shooting from long range, and made 26-of-37 free throws (70.3 percent).

The visiting Broncs shot 61.4 percent from the floor (27-of-44), but made only 4-of-15 from behind the arch (26.7 percent) and 13-of-24 from the foul line (54.2 percent).

UTPA also had a 30-20 advantage on the glass, but the Eagles forced 21 turnovers compared to only 15 miscues of their own.

“I am really proud of these guys,” said NCCU head coach Henry Dickerson. “They have been through so much adversity, yet they continue to battle and improve. They deserve to celebrate this victory.”

NCCU returns to action on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 16-17 to host the BC Powder Classic. The host Eagles face Central State (Ohio) on Friday and Chowan on Saturday. Both NCCU contests are slated for a 7:30 p.m. start, following the first-round game at 5:30 p.m. inside McLendon-McDougald Gymnasium.

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