GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Davaris McGowens scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds and North Carolina A&T held on to beat Morgan State 69-67 on Saturday.
Amari Hamilton added 13 points for the Aggies (9-8, 2-0 MEAC). Denzel Keyes had 12 points and five rebounds and Femi Olujobi chipped in 10 points.
The Bears (7-10, 3-1) had its season-long three-game winning streak snapped and suffered its first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) loss of the season, while N.C. A&T improved to 9-8 overall and 2-0 in conference play.
Morgan State jumped to a 12-2 start but Hamilton sank back-to-back 3-pointers after that to spark a 15-4 run that gave the Aggies a 19-14 edge with 8:35 left in the half. The teams were tied 37-37 at intermission.
North Carolina A&T pulled ahead early in the second half and a McGowens jumper followed by a Hamilton 3-pointer made it 55-54 with 9:06 to play and the Aggies led the rest of the way.
Tiwian Kendley, who entered the game averaging 31.2 points per game, scored 18 of his game-high 20 points in the first half for the Bears. Phillip Carr added 18 points and seven boards and David Syfax chipped in 13 points and six boards off the bench.
Morgan State will attempt to snap an eight-game road losing streak when the Bears prepare to face the North Carolina Central Eagles (9-8, 3-0) on Monday night at the McDougald-McLendon Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Bear Note:
Phillip Carr scored a layup to pull the Bears to within 69-65 with 1:03 remaining in the game. It marked his 1,000th career point in a Blue & Orange jersey. He currently ranks No. 26 on the school's all-time scoring list (1,002 points) and is just the 11th player in school history to have 1,000 points and 500 rebounds...he has 609 rebounds so far.
Tiwian Kendley fouled out at the 8:32 mark with the Bears trailing 55-54 in the game.
