DURHAM, N.C. – Norfolk State nearly pulled off a historic comeback victory on Monday at McDougald-McLendon Arena, erasing a 29-point second half deficit in a 76-75 overtime loss to North Carolina Central.
 
Kris Bankston posted a monster double-double, scoring a career-high 29 points while racking up 12 rebounds. Freshman George Beale Jr. helped spark the late surge, scoring 12 points in the second half on Monday.
 
Cahiem Brown got the Spartans (20-9, 9-4 MEAC) going with a pair of inside scores, but Eagles forward Brendan Medley-Bacon responded with two baskets on the other end. Eric Boone knocked down two 3-pointers shortly after to give the Eagles a 10-7 advantage.
 
North Carolina Central guard Fred Cleveland Jr. provided the pivotal spark in the first half, knocking down three unanswered 3-pointers to put the Eagles up double-digits.
 
The Eagles continued to heat up from behind the arc, opening the lead up to 31-9 after Cleveland knocked down his third long ball of the night.
 
Bankston stopped the bleeding with back-to-back scores, before Daryl Anderson knocked down a 3-pointer the Spartans desperately needed. But Eagles forward Kris Monroe drilled a triple in the final seconds, sending North Carolina Central to halftime with a commanding 40-20 advantage.
 
The Eagles came back out with the same aggression, opening the second half on a 10-2 run. With 14 minutes and 22 seconds on the clock, Cleveland knocked down a 3-pointer to put NCCU ahead 55-26, its largest lead of the night.
 
It was a completely different tale from that point on.
 
Jack Doumbia started the run with a mid-range jump shot, before George Beale Jr. knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing. Beale nabbed a steal on the other end, taking it coast to coast for an and-one layup with a foul.
 
Beale earned another successful trip to the free thow line moments later, scoring his sixth consecutive point for the Spartans with a pull-up jumper as well.
 
The Norfolk State freshman continued his second half charge, tallying another steal to set up an Anderson layup, capping off 14 unanswered points by the Spartans.
The Spartan bench began to rally around the team's rapidly-building energy, as the home crowd's roars were silenced by a Bankston dunk and a Tyrese Jenkins 3-pointer in quick succession.
 
Bankston cut the deficit to single digits with an and-one in the paint, and before Doumbia clicked again from mid-range to bring the Spartans within five.

North Carolina Central desperately tried to slow down the robust surge, but the Spartans continued to clamp down on the defensive end. NCCU made 21 of its first 40 shot attempts (52.5 percent), but Norfolk State held the Eagles to a 25 percent clip for the final 14 minutes of regulation (4-of-16).
 
Beale sliced his way through the paint and finished at the rim to make it a one-possession game with just over a minute to play. The Spartans got another stop, and Bankston converted at the free throw line to cut it to one.
 
Doumbia came up with a clutch steal seconds later, getting to the line where he would tie the game. The 29-point deficit had evaporated, and Doumbia swatted Justin Wright's game-winning attempt at the other end, sending the game into overtime.
 
Wright opened the extra period with a quick jumper, but Bankston responded once again at the other end. It would be NSU's only made field goal for the first four minutes and 50 seconds of overtime, however, until the graduate senior cut North Carolina Central's lead to two with a late score.
 
Late free throws closed it out for the Eagles, though. Jenkins knocked down a 3-pointer in the game's closing seconds, but it wasn't enough to pull off the thrilling comeback win. NCCU escaped with a one-point triumph, tying the Spartans in the MEAC standings.  
 
Norfolk State heads to Washington D.C. for a nationally televised grand finale against first-place Howard on Thursday, with a share of the MEAC regular season title at stake. Tip-off is slated for 9 p.m. on ESPNU.