DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The Embry-Riddle University men's basketball team always displays great spirit in its home opener and homecoming weekend, but this year was especially emotional with a series of events prior to tip-off pumping up the Eagles to a 94-60 victory Friday night at the ICI Center in front of a crowd of 1,349.
The primer of spirit started earlier in the day during the ERAU alumni game which saw former Eagle assistant coach Rob Graham coach in his first game since suffering a cardiac arrest in February of 2005. With many of the players that knew him well among the alumni and the 2006-07 team watching, it brought out the level of pride and tradition of the program. Then before tip-off, former Eagle great Harold Pierson had his No. 11 jersey retired. The Orlando native, now a fire fighter with the City of Orlando fire department, is only one of two Eagle players to be a three-time NAIA All-American closing out his career with first-team honors.
"Tonight was a lot of fun for our basketball team, being there to play in this great atmosphere," ERAU head coach Steve Ridder said. "We made a statement about our unselfishness, sharing the basketball, keeping everybody involved in the offense and on the defensive end of the floor. Our kids, they want to do what's best for our team and we really showed that tonight."
There were several bright spots in the opening half including sophomore Tyler DeBord, who had big shoes to fill with the departure of first-team All-American Michael Pyle to graduation. But, donning Pyle's old number 25, his play didn't look much different as he recorded a double-double in the first half going 5-for-6 from the field with 10 rebounds. DeBord finished with 16 points and 12 boards on 7-for-8 shooting.
"We're trying to develop Debord to be an All-Conference player, tonight he had a double-double and you can see his scoring and rebounding abilities," Ridded added.
It might have been emotional overload early as Fisher College (Mass.) came out and battled with the Eagles. The Falcons, who also advanced to the 2006 NAIA national tournament, trailed by two at 15-13 with 12:35 remaining in the first half. However, ERAU showed how quickly a two-point advantage can turn into a 20-point lead as Embry-Riddle went on a 29-9 run to close out the half with a 44-22 lead.
Ormond Beach native and former Father Lopez standout Ryan Ridder took over point guard duties for Jake Pickett, who now serves as Eagles' graduate assistant coach. Ridder, who sat out all of last year after transferring from College of Wooster (Ohio), responded with four assists in the first half with no turnovers and added five points including a three-pointer.
"When the game was on the line, Ryan made a lot of plays that I think he can continue to make this year," Coach Ridder said. "Jake and Coach Keller have spent a lot of time with him. He's got a lot of great leadership qualities, and that's started to reflect on his teammates. I think that's going to help us this year."
Another local standout and former Father Lopez teammate Denver Cobb finally at full strength after battling injuries the past two seasons with ERAU, got untracked and showed his offensive abilities. He recorded 12 points on three long-range bombs in 12 minutes of play in the first half and ended the game with 16 points and four rebounds.
Nick Miller had a quiet and efficient evening for the Eagles with 12 points on 5-for-6 shooting and added three rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
The large lead got bigger in the second half reaching 31 points at 59-28 with 13:48 remaining and this allowed the coaching staff to go deep into the bench. Embry-Riddle's bench finished with 41 points paced by sixth-man Denny Joseph reached double-figures with 14 points in 16 minutes registering seven layups in 13 attempts from the floor. Murat Hisarkaya finished with eight points and seven boards, newcomer Houston Wright added nine and Drew Whitaker posted six points and five boards.
Michael Newcombe led the way for Fisher with 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
