Jaylan Bodiford (NC A&T Sports Information)

Greensboro – Johnson C. Smith’s women’s basketball players may have come to Corbett Sports Center with a figurative Division II label on their backs, but they didn’t let that stop them from giving North Carolina A&T a 40-minute vigorous tussle.

It took a late second-half surge, started by an Amber Calvin 3-pointer as the shot clock ticked down, before the Aggies were finally able to pull away with a 71-61 win. Following the tight win, N.C. A&T head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs was not upset. She was thankful.

“I can appreciate games like this because now they know regardless of the opponent you have, you’ve got to play,” said Bibbs, who earned career win No. 492, and is now eight wins away from her 500th victory.

“Johnson C. Smith is a good team,” she added. “You can’t take anything away from them. They are a well-coached team. They executed on both ends. We told the ladies (at halftime) in the locker room, the things we’ve been practicing; we need to see in the game.”

The N.C. A&T women had good reason to be proud of their early-season accomplishments. They had an impressive win over a team ranked in the Mid-Major poll in Liberty, followed by wins over Clemson of the ACC and Siena.

For more information about the NCAT Lady Aggies victory over JCSU, click here