Norfolk, VA (Sports Network) - Lamont Middleton scored 12 points as the North Carolina A&T Aggies captured a 65-54 win over the Florida A&M Rattlers in the opening round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament at Norfolk Scope Arena.

Also scoring in double figures for the seventh-seeded Aggies (16-16) were Adrian Powell and Jean Louisme with 11 points apiece. With the victory the Aggies now move to the quarterfinals on Wednesday to do battle with second- seeded North Carolina Central.

The 10th-seeded Rattlers (8-23) were paced by Jamie Adams with a game-high 14 points, but shot just 4-of-12 from the floor and turned the ball over six times in the setback. Markee Teal and D'Andre Bullard tacked on 10 points apiece for the squad.

NC A&T opened the meeting on a 5-0 run and never fell behind, although the team led by just a single point at the break, 25-24. The Rattlers managed to remain close thanks to 50 percent shooting from the floor through the first 20 minutes of action.

In the second half the Aggies began to pull away on the strength of 60.0 percent shooting from the field and 6-of-9 behind the 3-point line, en route to the double-digit triumph.

In addition to outscoring the Rattlers at the free-throw line by a 19-7 margin, NC A&T also forced 18 turnovers and traded those in for 27 points.

GAME NOTES:

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