News-Record.com

GREENSBORO -- N.C. A&T coach Jerry Eaves raved about his team's combination of height and athleticism before the season.

Even though his players haven't jelled yet, there was plenty of evidence Wednesday night in the Corbett Center to believe they will figure it all out sooner rather than later.

The Aggies struggled in the first half Wednesday night, but they still had plenty of firepower to crush visiting Talladega (Ala.) College 83-54.

Talladega featured a much smaller lineup with the exception of 7-foot-1 center Jerel Davis.

The odd matchup made it tough for the Aggies (2-1) to gain their footing out of the gate.

"I thought we were very sluggish," Eaves said. "Our energy wasn't what it was supposed to be. We just didn't come with the frenzied pace that we have to play with."

Junior point guard Tavarus Alston, a Smith High School product, scored for a career-high 17 points to lead four Aggies in double figures.

Alston made 7 of 9 shots and had four assists, while Nick Wilson and Ed Jones scored 14 apiece.

Wilson's layup and pair of free throws capped a 12-2 run midway through the second half to push the Aggies advantage to 53-33. Jones' 3-pointer from the corner gave A&T its biggest lead (32) with 3:12 left.

"This year we have a more balanced team," Alston said. "Anybody can get 20 (points) any night. We like to push the ball and get up and down the court."

The pace picked up to Alston's liking in the second half, when the Aggies focused more on attacking the rim and rebounding.

Talladega entered halftime plus-2 on the boards, but A&T dominated the rebounding margin 26-8 in the second half.

Davis paced Talladega with 17 points and didn't make life easy in the paint. He blocked three shots and altered several others, but the Aggies attacked the lane more as the game went on.

Talladega occasionally used a 2-3 zone to force the Aggies to shoot from the outside, but the shots weren't falling.

A&T made 5 of 20 from 3-point range, forcing Eaves to prod his players to go to work inside.

"We just have to be more interior-minded," he said. "We can shoot the ball, we just have to go inside out."

The Aggies did sink 16-of-20 free throws (80 percent) and played stellar defense, holding Talladega to 35 percent shooting and forcing 22 turnovers.

A&T pressed, trapped and played tenacious man-to-man defense in the half-court in an effort to reach the level of chaos Eaves seeks.

Thirteen players saw action, but five played less than 11 minutes. Something Eaves said will soon change.

"I'm going to play everybody," he said. "I want to try and wear down every opponent and play all 13 guys. When teams come in here in mid-January, there going to see 13 people pressing them, pushing the ball, attacking the basket, drawing charges.

"I just think my team's 13 are going to be better than most team's eight."