DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle men's basketball team scored 53 points in the second half to take a 94-85 victory over Talladega (0-5) in the second game of the Daytona Mitsubishi Shootout on Friday night. The Eagles improved their overall record to 4-1 and advanced to the championship game of the Shootout on Saturday.
The Eagles got off to a fast start as
DeForest Carter's four points, two rebounds and a block helped the Blue and Gold to an 11-1 lead just four minutes into the contest. The Eagles led by as many as 13 points with 13:42 remaining in the first half, but the Tornadoes, led by 13 points from Christopher Hyche, cut into that lead and at the halftime break, ERAU led by just three points (41-38).
Blake Touchard started the second half with a three-pointer, but Talladega's Kerry Harvis answered with a three-pointer of his own to keep the Tornadoes within striking distance. The trey was one of Harvis' seven scores from beyond the arc in the second half and his accuracy from long distance helped Talladega take an eight-point (68-60) lead with 9:36 left to play.
Looking for an answer, ERAU Head Coach
Steve Ridder turned to his bench and brought
Billy Serle onto the court. The junior transfer had a quiet first half, going 0-4 from the floor, but the second half was a different story for the Father Lopez graduate. He hit a three-pointer to pull the Eagles within three (68-65) and his second trey of the night tied the score at 72-72 with 5:46 left to play. Realizing that he had the hot hand, Serle's teammates got the ball to him on the perimeter and he did not disappoint, totaling 15 points on five treys in the second half.
Despite shooting 61.3 percent (19-31) in the second half, the Tornadoes managed just 10 points in the last four minutes, while the Eagles'
Ray Graham, who was 12-of-14 from the free throw line, converted on his free throw opportunities down the stretch as the Eagles pulled out the nine point victory.
Graham paced the Blue and Gold with a career-high 34 points on the night with 23 of those points coming in the second half. Touchard (15), Carter (10) and
Jeremiah Applin (11) rounded out the Eagles' double-digit scorers with Touchard and Carter dishing out five assists apiece. Carter was also the Eagles' blocks leader with five and Graham recorded his third double-double of the year with 10 rebounds.
Harvis led all scorers with 28 points, while Christopher Tanzy and Hyche totaled 15 points each for the Tornadoes who fall to 0-5 on the year.
The Eagles will take on Olivet Nazarene in Saturday's championship game slated for 8 p.m. The Tigers advanced with a 99-85 win over Warner Pacific in the first game of the tournament. Talladega and Warner Pacific will face each other in the consolation game at 6 p.m.
