 EASTERN MICHIGAN 52, RADFORD 48 Head coach Rob Murphy's Eagles, now 5-6 on the season, emerged from a 21-all halftime tie to hit six three-point field goals in the second half on the way to the win over Radford, now 3-10 on the season.
Eastern built a six-point second-half lead with 43.9 seconds left and made some crucial foul shots down the stretch to preserve the win.
Senior Quintin Dailey led the Eagles with a career-high 13 points, including 3-of-4 on triples, two straight during a key stretch midway in the second half.
The Eagles finished the game shooting 41 percent from the field, making 16-of-39, and shot a blistering 46.7 (7-of-15) from beyond the three-point arc. Eastern also had a strong effort from the free-throw line, making 13-of-17, and held a 32-28 rebound edge.
Radford shot just 32.1 percent, making 17-of-53 field goals and just 8-of-27 triple tries. The Highlanders had two 18-point scorers in the game with both Jareal Smith and RJ Price hitting that mark.
The game marked the debut of 7-foot center Da'Shonte Riley, who was playing his first game as an Eagle after being granted an NCAA eligibility waiver after transferring from Syracuse University this fall. He scored eight points with four rebounds in his EMU opener.
Senior guard Darrell Lampley put the Eagles on the board first with two free throws at the 19:29 mark.
Riley made the most of his first jumper for the Eagles, connecting on an eight-foot bank shot at the 15:28 mark and added another short banker at 14:31 to give the Eagles an 8-7 lead.
The home squad built a five-point lead, 21-16, on Smith's second three-point field goal of the half, but the Eagles fought back to tie it at 21-all on a triple by Dailey at the 2:17 mark.The half ended with the score knotted at 21.
The Eagles finished the first half shooting 39.1 percent from the field on 9-of-23 while holding Radford to just 29.6 percent on 8-of-28 attempts. EMU held a slight17-16 advantage on the boards. Riley was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the first half for eight points with three rebounds.
Radford opened the second half out-scoring the Eagles, 10-6, to gain a four-point lead, 31-27, at the 13:53 mark. But two free throws and two triples by Dailey put the Eagles on top, 33-31, at the 12:08 mark of the second half.
EMU slowly built a six-point lead, 46-40, with 43.9 left and saw its advantage dip to two twice in the late going before holding on for the four-point win.
The Eagles will stay in Virginia, moving just 15 miles down the road from Radford to square off with Virginia Tech University Thursday, Dec. 22, at 7 p.m. in Cassel Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va.
|
