After seven long seasons, the rivalry continues. On Jan. 22, the North Carolina A&T Aggies faced off against the North Carolina Central Eagles in a packed house.

Over 61 hundred fans filled the seats of Corbett Sports Center to witness the rebirth of the Aggie-Eagle rivalry. The Aggies fell 84-90 to the Eagles in an overtime thriller.

To ensure that everyone wanting to see the game was able to attend, students were asked to pick up a ticket for the game beforehand.

Corbett Sports center was full of police officers and security guards to make sure that it was a safe game for both Aggie and Eagle fans alike.

The Aggies began the game explosive, with quick points off dunks by center Thomas Coleman and forward Austin Witter. NCA&T’s explosive play would not last long; the Eagles hit four three-pointers in the first four minutes of the game to take a 12-4 lead over the Aggies.

With 13:45 to go in the game the Eagles went on a 12-0 run to lead the Aggies 31-10. The Eagles offense was too much for the Aggies to handle as they shoot 54 percent on the half, 57 percent for three pointers.  They would go on to shoot 47 percent on the game, 50 percent on three pointers.

They were led by guard C.J. Wilkerson’s 41 points.

“C.J. Wilkerson carried us; my job was easy,” said Eagle head coach LeVelle Moton. “I just drew on the board and said get the ball to him (Wilkerson), and get out the way.”

Eagle forward Nick Chasten added 17 points and 7 rebounds while Landon Clement recorded 13 points.

Coleman led the Aggies in the loss with 25 points and 16 rebounds. Aggie forward Adrian Powell added 13 points and 7 rebounds; guard Nic Simpson added 17 while guard Marc Hill recorded 14.

Although the Aggies had four players to reach double digits, their offense did not show up in the first half, and they found themselves down 26-48 at the half.

In the second half the Aggies were able to regain the momentum they once had at the beginning of the game.

After being down by 22 the Aggies were able to chip away at the Eagles lead; with just over 5 minutes left in regulation a three point shot by Hill sparked a 16-to-7 run by the Aggies which included seven clutch free throws.

With 16 seconds left in regulation the game was tied at 75 forcing the game into overtime. Free throws from Coleman gave the Aggies a two-point advantage: their first lead since the first minute of the game.  

At the 3:53 mark Coleman, the Aggies rebounder and core scorer, fouled out the game.

“Getting Coleman to foul out, I thought that was the biggest play of the game,” said Moton. “It stopped the bleeding on our behalf.”

With less than three minutes left in the game, the Eagles would go on to out score the Aggies 10-to-5 to seal a 90-84 victory.

The Aggies were plagued by missed shots and turnovers, which lead to the Eagle victory.  They fall to 9-11, 4-2 in the MEAC.  The Aggies next game is Jan. 29 against Coppin State in Baltimore, Md.

• Lauren Morgan