DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. ? Junior Tyler DeBord tallied his first double-double of the season to lead the Embry-Riddle men's basketball team to an 85-72 win over former Florida Sun Conference rival Flagler, Wednesday at the ICI Center. The Eagles, ranked fifth in the nation according to the first poll of the regular season, which was released on Wednesday, improve their overall record to 9-0, while the Saints are now even at 3-3 on the year.

DeBord was the game's leader in points (24) and rebounds (14). Sophomore Eric Lorenzi added 20 points, pulled down eight boards and handed out three assists, while Rocky Pierre scored 13 points. Denver Cobb was 5-7 from the field, including 2-3 from three-point land and 4-4 from the free throw line to finish with 16 points.

The Eagles led by as many as 16 points in the first half thanks in part to their defense, which held the Saints to just five field goals in 20 attempts over the first 12 minutes of play. DeBord and Lorenzi accounted for the bulk of the Eagles' scoring with 13 and 12 points, respectively.

Ben De La Cruz (16 pts., 8 reb.), who had 10 first-half points, scored six points in the last six minutes while John Pietkiewicz added five to help the Saints close the gap to nine points, making the score 39-30 at the half.

The Saints scored the first four points of the second half to make it a five-point game, but Cobb's three-pointer at 18:29 sparked a 9-3 Eagle run, giving the home team an 11-point cushion.

Flagler battled back and managed to get within seven points, but the Eagles, who shot 53.3 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc, made the most of their trips to the free throw line down the stretch, converting on 11 of 13 attempts to claim the win.

The Embry-Riddle men take a break from basketball for final exams and will return to the court at 7 p.m. on Dec. 17 when they host Roberts Wesleyan.