DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The sixth-ranked Embry-Riddle men's basketball team notched the 20th win of its 2010-11 campaign with an 81-51 defeat of Webber International in Sun Conference play on Wednesday. The Eagles, who moved up four spots in the latest NAIA national poll, shot 49 percent from the field to improve their overall record to 20-2 and their conference mark to 8-1.

The first four minutes of the game did not produce the offensive output the fans were hoping for as both teams struggled to get their respective offenses going. Embry-Riddle made the only two field goals in the first 14 shots of the contest and led 4-1 at the 16:06 mark.

After a Gabriel Rutledge layup made it a one-point game (4-3), the Eagles went on a 7-2 run to go up 12-5 with 14:29 left in the half, but the Warriors, spurred by back-to-back three-pointers from Marvin Williams and Mike Bonilla, battled back to tie the score at 12-12.

As a team, ERAU came into the game shooting 65 percent from the free throw line, but the Blue and Gold was 6-of-6 from the charity stripe in the first half and a pair of free throws by David Butler triggered a 10-0 run that put ERAU up 22-12. But once again, the Warriors answered and cut the lead to four (25-21) with 6:44 left in the half.

Bonilla's second three of the half prompted ERAU head coach Steve Ridder to call a 30-second timeout and the break in play served its purpose as the Eagles outscored the Warriors 13-5 over the last 5:47 to lead 39-26 at the half.

Coming out of the intermission, Webber International could not find an answer for the potent Eagle offense that made 52 percent (17-of-33) of their shots in the second half. After leading by 13 at the half, it took ERAU only four minutes extend the advantage to 21 points (49-28) and the home team built the cushion to 32 before claiming their fourth 30-point win of the season.

Butler came off the bench to lead all scorers with 23 points, while Ray Graham recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Glenn Dalcourt was the only other Eagle to score in double figures, finishing with 17 points, four assists, four steals and four rebounds.
The Eagles also turned in a strong performance on the defensive end of the floor, holding the Warriors to just 33 percent shooting on the night. As a team, the Eagles, who average 6.1 blocks per contest, registered eight blocked shots on the night, including three in the first three minutes of play. Coming into the game, Webber International seniors Williams and Junior Geidi were averaging 19.4 points and 13.2 points, respectively, but the ERAU offense effectively shut down the Warriors' top-scoring duo holding Williams to just 12 points and Geidi to a single point on a free throw.

In addition, to forcing the visitors to take tough shots, the Eagles did a good job corralling the missed opportunities as they bested Webber International 31-19 on the defensive boards. ERAU's 17-12 margin in offensive rebounding resulted in 26 second-chance points for the Blue and Gold and the Eagles converted 23 Warrior turnovers into 22 points.

Williams was the Warriors' leading scorer and Bonilla added 11 points for Webber International who drops to 9-9 overall and 4-5 in league play.

The Eagles have little time to rest as they return to action at 7 p.m. on Friday when they host Johnson & Wales in another Sun Conference fixture at the ICI Center. Friday's contest will also recognize the three inductees – Jared Mathis, Kyle Mas and Paul Buckley – into Embry-Riddle Athletics' 2010-11 Hall of Fame class prior to tip-off.