Clutch Shots By Mackinnon, Higgins Seal Win For Elon Against North Carolina A&T

GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Elon University men's basketball team has had some thrilling second halves this season and that trend continued Saturday.

With just under 17 minutes to go in the Corbett Sports Center, Elon led the Aggies of North Carolina A&T 50-31, the team's largest advantage of the game. Led by Jalal Mckie, the Aggies were able to slowly chip away at the Phoenix's lead.

A 9-0 run by the Aggies cut Elon's lead to just one with just three minutes left. Isaac Harrell converted on a reverse layup to extend the lead to three; however, the momentum was still in A&T's favor.

It was at that time that Billy Taylor's squad knew they needed to make a play. On the next possession, Rob Higgins stripped the ball from Mckie. He started a break that resulted in a three pointer from the top of the key, which Max Mackinnon buried. That shot gave Elon some breathing room with a six point lead.

With 1:10 left in the game, the Aggies again brought the score back to within three. Mackinnon then drew a foul and knocked down two free throws, which made it a -66-61 game.

"I wasn't making most of my shots, and I know last game I wanted to redeem myself from the free throw line, so it was good that I made those two free throws at the end," Mackinnon said.

On the next trip down the floor, A&T's Camian Shell hit a mid range shot to cut it to three with 56 seconds remaining. Aggies head coach Monte Ross immediately called a timeout, needing one more stop.

Using every last bit of the time on the clock, the veteran guard Higgins looked for an opening. Despite great defense by the Aggies, Higgins sank a tough turnaround jumper from the right baseline, essentially sealing the deal for Elon.

Beating the shot clock for a HUGE bucket down the stretch

We see you @ElonMBasketball Rob Higgins#CAAHoops pic.twitter.com/R6AfjzaTXu
— CAA Basketball (@CAABasketball) February 3, 2024

"That shot at the end, it was kind of just a make a play moment," Higgins said. "They guarded one of our actions, we got into a dribble ball screen and I just made a play."

Higgins is no stranger to hitting clutch shots for Elon, and this one was as important as any. This game was described as a "must win," and he saved his best shot for the end.

"Rob's Big Shot Bob, so that's what he does," Mackinnon said. "He knows what to do in those kinds of situations because he's been there before."

The clutch plays down the stretch by Mackinnon and Higgins secured Elon's third conference win, the second over A&T, and brought its record to 10-13 overall. The Phoenix is back at home on Feb. 8 to take on Stony Brook.

"[We're] really emphasizing just running our stuff and being all together as a team because when we play together, obviously we do good things out there," Higgins said. "When we're connected and playing together, the sky's the limit."

'Rising Phoenix' is a new student-led initiative to cover Elon Athletics. Through innovative content creation and storytelling, Elon University students will have the opportunity to highlight the moments, people and events that make an impact, leveraging the athletic department's various web and social media platforms for distribution. Follow Rising Phoenix on Twitter (@EURisingPhoenix) and Instagram (@elonrisingphoenix). Interested in joining this initiative as a content creator (video, graphics, writing, storytelling, or more)? Contact Jacob Kisamore at jkisamore@elon.edu.

--ELON--

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Players Mentioned

#3 Max Mackinnon: G; 6' 6"; Sophomore

#10 Rob Higgins: G; 6' 1"; Fifth Year

#12 Isaac Harrell: F; 6' 8"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#3 Max Mackinnon
: 6' 6"; Sophomore
: G

#10 Rob Higgins
: 6' 1"; Fifth Year
: G

#12 Isaac Harrell
: 6' 8"; Freshman
: F

Players Mentioned

#3 Max Mackinnon

#10 Rob Higgins

#12 Isaac Harrell

Players Mentioned

#3 Max Mackinnon

#10 Rob Higgins

#12 Isaac Harrell