No. 12 Lady Bears Fall To No. 5 N.C. A&T, 66-53 - Morgan State University Athletics

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (March 5, 2012)-Amarah Williams recorded her fourth double-double of the season, finishing with a game-high and career-tying 19 points, while pulling down a career-high 14 rebounds, but it wasn't enough as Morgan State dropped a 66-53 decision to North Carolina A&T in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) opening round game on Monday at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Williams, who on Sunday was named to the MEAC All-Rookie team, shot 6-for-10 from the field and connected on all seven of her free throw attempts. Senior Omara Parker came off the bench and also tallied a double-double for the Lady Bears, recording 13 points, 10 rebounds, a team-high four assists, two blocks and a game-high three steals in her final collegiate game.

North Carolina A&T (15-15) was led by JaQuayla Berry, who recorded a double-double for the Lady Aggies with 14 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Adriana Nazario came off the bench to score 13 points and had a game-high seven assists, while Tiffanie Adair added 12 points.

The Lady Bears (6-24), which ended their season with a 10-game losing skid, were held to just five field goals in the second half.

The two teams played nearly three minutes before Williams scored on a layup and added the free throw from the foul to break a 39 all halftime score. That would be the Lady Bears last lead of the afternoon.

A&T then countered by scoring the next 12 points to take a 51-42 lead, before Morgan State's Tracey Carrington scored six straight to pull the Lady Bears within three points at 51-48 with 11:11 remaining.

But the Lady Aggies went on a 10-3 run over the next four minutes to take a 10-point advantage (61-51) with 6:08 remaining. Morgan State would not score against until a jumper by Briana Coardes with 1:01 to play, ending a six minute scoreless drought for the Lady Bears. Coardes' jumper was also Morgan State's first field goal in nearly 10 minutes, since a layup by Carrington at the 11:11 mark.

Morgan State entered the contest winners of four straight against the Lady Aggies and led throughout the first 12 minutes of the first half. The Lady Bears held a 14-6 lead, but the Lady Aggies countered with a 7-0 run.

The 12th-seeded Lady Bears pushed their advantage to as much as six points (24-18) on four straight points by Williams.

A&T took its first lead of the afternoon on a jumper by Nazario at the 5:31 mark, giving the fifth-seeded Lady Aggies a 26-24 lead. Parker later gave the Lady Bears the lead back when she drained a trey, putting Morgan State up 35-34, before scoring on a layup to end the half with the score tied at 39 apiece.

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