Silence of the Rams II

Look out! The Lady Aggies just lost a game this week to a conference team, Delaware State.

I never saw the movie, but I know that The Silence of The Lambs was supposed to be very scary. This game will not be scary for the Lady Aggie basketball fans, but it will be scary for Winston Salem State.

Tip-off is at 2pm. The Lady Aggies are still playing good ball. Plus, this is being designated as a Pack the House Challenge game.

I expect a big crowd but a 'Silent' one ... at least from the WSSU fans as they watch the surgery.

A&T is still a special team.

Tobacco Road II

Well, well, well. The Aggie men will face Tobacco Road foe Winston-Salem State this Saturday at 4pm.

Whenever one picks tobacco (called priming) you do a “round the world” type of sweep with your hand on the stalk, which grabs three or four leaves at one time.

Also, you start with the bottom leaves first, and you come back later for another sweep in a week as the remaining leaves that are higher on the stalk ripen. Your back is bent for the entire row (except to load the wagon), as opposed to bobbin’ up and down for each stalk.

The Aggie men have now faced all the MEAC teams and went from losing to those at the bottom, to climbing into a log-jam for second place. Just as you cannot pick the tobacco leaves too early, this team had to ripen on its own. We are now poised the play the same teams again in OUR place (except Norfolk), and we''ll go down the row again ... starting with WSSU.

This will be a good game. This game will sell out. This game turned away people last year who were chilling with their friends and decided to walk over to the gym five minutes after tip-off. They got turned away.

This is Clarence “Big House' Gaines /Cal Irwin/ Don Corbett”, big.

I still remember Carlos Terry and James "The Bird" Sparrow from those games of yesteryear. Both were drafted in the fifth round that year(The Phil Ford Draft). http://www.insidehoops.com/nba-draft/1978.shtml

This will be the only sell-out for us this season. We need the money this match-up brings and so does WSSU. The Rams will come across the Yadkin River searching for a win on Saturday. They'll be led by Brian Fisher (13.8 ppg) and Jamal Durham (13.3 ppg). And I have not seen A&T at .500 this late in the season in a long, long time.

Tobacco road … with another row to work. Where hard work comes with every job, the hot sun becomes sweat, and a song in your head becomes your best friend.

This will be THE game of the Triad this weekend.

Rear-view mirror

The Lady Aggies are rolling (11-0 in conference play). But so is Delaware State (9-2).

This game is on ESPNU at 4:30 PM, so don’t go straight home after work. You may want to head right over to the sports bar for this one.

During the last meeting against these two teams in Greensboro, A&T had to come back from 15 points down in the second half, before prevailing 56-51. I expect the Lady Aggies to win again tonight, and this could be the best game of the evening.

Even though Delaware State is tough at home (10-1), this Lady Aggie team deserves to be on TV.

They are driving towards a title and must make sure DSU remains in the rear-view mirror.

Aggie men on TV

The Aggie men will play Delaware State on ESPNU tonight at 7pm. This is a big game. A&T needs to win in order to stay in the race for 2nd place.

The Hornets, with their controlled offense which makes you play defense for the entire shot clock, are a pain.

If they miss and get the rebound, then there you go again. The next thing you know, it's five minutes left in the game and you still haven't gotten into an offensive groove. Then, every shot or free throw you attempt becomes a big one. It gets magnified.

Plus DSU has what I call a “jump trap” which appears at first like a normal zone and then traps your guards while your other players are in motion and setting picks with their backs turned. They rock you to sleep with a zone … and then spring the jump trap!

The Hornets are at home tonight will be led by Donald Johnson (12.0 ppg) and Frisco Sandidge (11.2 ppg). Memorial Hall Gym should be packed.

The Aggies on the other hand, must position a man in the middle during this jump trap, and attack it. DSU is tough on both offense and defense. Thomas Coleman will be the key. He has to have a good game and get offensive rebounds. We will win this game if we play solid ball. I can’t put a spin on this one. This is the mid-term exam and the next-to-last road game.

It’s showtime!

The Lady Aggies are hot!

By the time I made it to the Bethune-Cookman/A&T game this past Monday, the A&T starters were already finished. The commute from Raleigh/Durham, along with the time it took to mix that ole Scott Hall recipe, set me back a little!

But honestly, this is not a bad thing. The Lady Aggies’ bench is really stepping up and contributing down the stretch. What can you say? A&T is just playing extremely well right now. This team is Hot! It’s hot like that “physical plant steam” cutting through the hawk at 3 AM in the winter, as you walk over a steam man-hole across campus.

Brittanie Taylor-James is playing at a very high level. According to ESPN, she currently ranks 37th in the nation in scoring with a 17.9 ppg average thru Feb 8th ( http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/leaders?year=2009&cat=1&type=1 )

Right now, this A&T team is creating its own history in Aggieland. They will face Maryland-Eastern Shore on Saturday at 2pm. The UMES Lady Hawks lost to the second placed Delaware State Lady Hornets by two points back in December, and they also suffered a two-point defeat to Coppin State on February 2nd. However, when UMES faced the Lady Aggies in Greensboro earlier this year, they were blown out.

UMES may show up, but don’t forget that steam is water that has heated up. It can run you out of a room like a Scott Hall radiator, and these Lady Aggies will run you off of the court.

The Aggie Men are on the Move

Man, I thought we already played UMES up in Maryland! (Blame that on to my summer at UNC-G).

Shucks. Well anyway, let’s just go up there and sweep this team again.

The Hawks will have to bring back Art Shell to hold the “Dawgs” off this time. This A&T team has found something special. They will march into Maryland-Eastern Shore with a belly full of Greensboro cornbread and farm milk, FAMU snake meat and BCU sweet potato pie.

It’s like a man who just won big at last week's crap game. He’ll go back to the game with a little money to burn and he’ll be loose with it.

A&T dodged a bullet in Hampton and then found itself back in the hunt for a first-round bye in the upcoming MEAC tournament. It swept the Florida teams like a hurricane and looked around and thought, ‘hey, we might not be winning pretty (free throws and turnovers) … but here we are!”

Yes, this current winning streak is the best news we’ve had since the Norfolk win. Can our Dwaine “Pee Wee" Board disciples push back their ‘Art Shell’ protégées? Can we 'move' on up into second place?

We need to kick in the door, and not play with this team! UMES is led by junior forward Neal Pitt (6-6, 230 lb/16.6 ppg). Tip-off is at Saturday at 4 PM

Move over, second place. Here we come!

The Spring Break is Over

The Lady Aggies will meet Bethune-Cookman on Monday night at 6 PM.

Aaaah ... BCU, with Daytona Beach and Black College Spring Break Weekend. The good life!

However ...(waking up)... we are on tobacco road now. With the blues as a neighbor and hard work in every direction. A&T has a farm, with dirt and grit. It’s where you plant, wait for it to grow, work to harvest it, THEN you eat - in that order!

The Lady Aggies grinded out a win against FAMU on Saturday, with the A&T starters struggling and the team taking 78 shots! Were the Lady Aggies on break? Well the "Spring Break" is over.

One should expect this A&T team to start rolling again. They learned that their bench, with Tierra Thomas (10 points) and Reisha Bullock (9 point), can help down the stretch in case of foul trouble or an off night by the top scorers.

Meanwhile, the Lady Wildcats, led by Sarah Bolden's 22 points, had all of their starting five in double figures in a win against Norfolk this past weekend. But in all honesty, NSU is struggling.

The Lady Aggies should be OK. The Spring Break is over. For BCU, it will be a rude awaking.

Bethune-Cookman and Sweet Potato Pie

Back in the day, the word is that Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune sold sweet potato pies to keep her young school open. Well, that definitely sounds like an enticing idea for the Aggie men right now, who could bring a thermos of their own "Aggie Farm" milk to the table (filled to the brim from the cafe and slipped out in a knapsack).

The Monday night meeting will feature a Bethune-Cookman team that is “fat” (the Wildcats are currently in 2nd place) and tired (guard C.J. Reed played 40 minutes and scored 12 points) in a win against Norfolk. A&T, on the other hand, had been surviving on scraps until recently.

They received no crab cakes from the Baltimore teams. The received no fish from the Eastern Shore and no Bison burgers in DC.

Weakened, and on the outside looking in, they finally stalked Hampton and "jumped them" with a last second shot. They had enough food to make it back to Greensboro, helped by the "dog -eat- dog" battles in the MEAC that left the pot unattended by everyone except for Morgan. Then FAMU offered some "snake meat", and Thomas Coleman came alive. Now, the desert...BCU sweet potato pie!

Pass that pie over here, Brother! The Aggie Dawgs want to join the pack, near the top of the league. The 8pm start will feature a Wildcat team with aforementioned C.J.Reed (14.3 ppg) and forward John Holmes (10.0 ppg). This is now a big game for a piece of the "big pie" - a seat at the table with the league leaders and a first-round bye in the tournament.

Save me some!

The Lady Aggies set their sights on FAMU

The North Carolina A&T women will face Florida A&M on Saturday at 2pm.

The Lady Aggies were tested by Hampton on Monday night, down to the last minute, and showed the heart of a champion with big shots down the stretch.

The "Let’s Pack the Pound Again" promotion is underway to showcase this MEAC- leading Lady Aggie squad. A&T has only had four home games this season and is running on fumes from its recent road trip. FAMU is paced by seniors Stephanie Foster (13.5 ppg) and Deidra Jones 12.9 (ppg.). A&T senior Brittanie Taylor-James had 28 points against Hampton, including a big 3-pointer with 48 seconds left. Sophomore Jaleesa Sams had a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds to add to the victory.

This Lady Aggie team is good. Lets Pack the Pound Again on Saturday!

The HBCU Tobacco Road is Smoking!

Greensboro with Lorillard (Newport cigarettes) and Winston-Salem with RJ Reynolds will definitely be “smoking” with attention this weekend.

N.C. A&T will host Florida A&M on Saturday at 4pm, and WSSU will host Morgan State for an ESPNU match-up at 6pm that same night.

Last week, WSSU swept FAMU and Bethune-Cookman. Maybe the Aggie men studied those tapes because the same two schools are on tap in Greensboro, for A&T's next two games. Also, the Aggies would like to see if that hot Rams team can beat Morgan State Saturday night and if so, just how they do it!

A&T needs to win its next two games in order to stay in the hunt for league respectability. Home cooking with the "Dawg Pound" and Livewire cheering sections should help the Aggies play to win. Besides, the Aggies are riding high from a win at Hampton via a last second 3-pointer and another big shot that sent the Howard game into overtime in an eventual loss.

FAMU is paced by Lamar Twitty (10 ppg) and Dale Hughes (9.9 ppg).

This Aggie team needs to catch fire! Smoke is not enough. This team needs a big win. WSSU beat FAMU 80-66 on January 31 -- in the Rattler’s own house! Will Thomas Coleman catch fire? Can we cut down on our turnovers? Will we finally get an easy win?

Can we hold serve ... or am I blowing 'smoke'?

The Big Payback

The Lady Aggies head to Hampton on Monday, February 2nd, looking for "The Big Payback".

Hampton just routed the Norfolk State women by 30 this past weekend, and A&T just beat Howard on Saturday by 18.

Prior to coming to A&T, Coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs guided the Lady Pirates from 1997 to 2004. Last year, her Lady Aggies were riding a 14- game winning streak when Hampton unceremoniously ended it with a 85- 84 win at home. Folks, the rematch between these two teams on Monday night may shape up to be the game of the evening, men or women's.

The contest is scheduled for a 6pm tip-off and will feature two of the MEAC's top players in Hampton's Chinyere Ukoh (10.3ppg), and Jerika Jenkins (8.1 ppg).

Some might wonder if former Bibbs' assistant and now Hampton head coach, Walter Mebane, remembers any of his former boss' old plays. Well, it may not even matter much because you can rest assured that this strong Lady Aggie team vividly remembers last year's loss.

Get ready for The Big Payback.

The Aggie men search for "freedom"

... freedom from being in the cellar of the conference, that is.

The trek to meet the Hampton Pirates, who just suffered a loss at home to Norfolk State this past Saturday, will take the Aggie men past the 'Emancipation Oak' and the Booker T. Washington statue, all the way up to the Hampton Convocation Center on Monday night for an 8pm tip-off.

As we all know, February 1 is a special date to Aggies everywhere and the entire world, thanks to the Greensboro Four and their lunch counter sit-in movement. The Aggie men will need to show the same kind of persistence on the basketball court on February 2nd against a tough Hampton team .

The Aggies' tired legs will surely get tested by a Hampton team that is led by guards Vincent Simpson (12.7 ppg ) and Christopher Tolson (8.3ppg). The Pirates lost to Norfolk 62-68 on Saturday in the "Battle of the Bay" , after being up by as much as 15. However, this Hampton team is very talented and has already beaten conference leader Morgan State earlier in the season.

A&T will be coming off an emotional overtime loss to Howard, but did get good games from both Ed Jones (19 pts) and Nicholas Wilson (21 pts). The Aggies hope to get "free" of all the turnovers (25) that plagued them last game, and they will also look to "free up" Thomas Coleman, who only took one shot against the Bison. Coleman needs to have a strong performance in order for the Aggies to have a chance.

One important lesson remains: "freedom" is earned.

By the way, Hampton will have live online stats during the games for fans to follow the action.
http://www.hamptonpirates.com/index.asp?path=mbball