DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. ? Junior Tyler Debord tallied a game-high 24 points to lead the fourth-ranked Embry-Riddle men's basketball team to a 77-74 win over St. Lawrence in the final game of the 2007 Land of Magic Classic on Saturday. With the win, the Eagles matched the program's best start of 12-0. The last time they accomplished that feat was in 2000-01 when they finished the season at 32-4.

Eric Lorenzi recorded his second double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Rocky Pierre finished with 17 points, two assists and three steals.

Tom Wopperer was the leading scorer for the Saints with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Bela Vonnak led the Saints on the boards with nine to go with his 10 points on the night.

As was the case in the first game of the Land of Magic Classic, the Eagles were down early, falling behind 21-11. But with 10:33 left in the first half, the Blue and Gold stepped up its defensive pressure, forcing five straight Saints turnovers. The Eagles scored 13 points off first-half turnovers and, following an 11-0 run, they took the lead for the first time at the 7:07 mark on a Will Benjamin lay-up.

Both teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half with neither team having greater than a three-point advantage.

Ben Augilano gave the Saints a three-point lead on a lay-up with just six seconds left in the half. But Ryan Ridder got the ball to Pierre and Pierre drained a three-pointer just as the buzzer sounded to knot the score at 33 heading into the halftime break.

The Saints scored the first two points of the second half and surged to a seven-point lead with just under 13 minutes remaining. However, the Eagles pulled within two when Pierre hit another three-pointer at the 9:47 mark. The Saints reclaimed their seven-point advantage at the 8:44 mark thanks to back-to-back lay-ups by Vonnak and an Andy Hoercher three-pointer. The Eagles continued their offensive pressure with a 13-6 run and, with 5:01 left on the clock, Ridder hit his only three of the night to tie the game at 70.

Following that basket, the Eagles took the lead on a Debord basket, but St. Lawrence remained within striking distance, falling behind by no more than four points. Hoercher had an opportunity to tie the game in the final seconds, but Debord came up with a solid defensive play, sealing the win by blocking Hoercher's three-point attempt at the buzzer.

The Eagles return to action at 8 p.m. on Tuesday when they take on Philadelphia Biblical in the first round of the Bahama House & Best Western Aku Tiki Shootout at the ICI Center.