Senior guard Marcus Dockery and freshman standout Blake Harper were spectacular on Saturday afternoon, but the reserves helped Howard hold off North Carolina Central 82-78 at Burr Gymnasium.
The win snaps a five-game losing skid for the Bison, who improved to 9-14 overall (4-2 MEAC).
Howard took control early and maintained a small margin through most of the first half as Dockery, Harper, and fellow D.C. native graduate guard Anwar Gill accounted for 29 of their team points.
The Bison led 35-31 at intermission, following a late spurt by the Eagles.
Howard came out of the locker room and reeled off a run that saw their lead grow to 20 points, 63-43, at the 10:41 mark of the second half.
The rally was fueled by bench scoring from graduates Joshua Strong and Jaren Johnson and rookie Calvin Robins Jr., who combined to score 18 of the team’s points during the run.
Then, the Eagles rallied with a blitz of their own to whittle the lead to five points, 76-71, with 1:44 left. Reserves Kelech Okworogwo, Keishon Porter, Jaquai Murray and Aquan Smart came off the NCCU bench to account for 25 of the Eagles points during their comeback.
With the game on the line, the Bison turned to Dockery, Harper, and Strong, and they produced to secure the win. First, Dockery made a tough reverse move to the basket, but NCCU came right back with an Isaac Parson three-pointer, 78-74.
Calvin Robins with the Slam! Bison lead 72 – 60 with 5:12 left in regulation.#Dreamfactory#HowardUniversity#HUvsCentral pic.twitter.com/WVvy0jDxGn
— Howard Men’s Basketball (@HUMensBB) February 8, 2025
Harper, who was shackled with foul trouble through most of the game, made one-of-two free throws to make the score 79-78.
On the Bison’s ensuing possession, Gill missed a close-range shot, but Strong hustled and secured the ball with 2.2 seconds remaining. The graduate guard calmly sank both free throws, and Howard came away with a hard-earned victory.
Gill finished with 12 points and four assists.
As important as the bench production was, it was the individual play of redshirt junior forward Ayodele Taiwo (Lagos, Nigeria), who had his best game in a Bison uniform.
He just missed a rare double (11 blocks and nine rebounds). The 11 blocks were the second-most in a game in school history.
The Eagles were led by Po’Boigh King, who scored all 16 of his points in the first half. Porter chipped in with 15 points and Okworogwo had 13 points off the bench in 14 minutes of play.
Courtesy: Howard Athletics
