DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Ognjen Miljkovic's three-point attempt with six seconds left nearly capped a tremendous comeback for the Embry-Riddle men's basketball team on Sunday night at the ICI Center, but the senior's shot was just a little off and visiting Drury came away with the 84-79 victory after two free throws sealed it. The Eagles (5-6) found themselves down by as many as 14 in the second half to the Panthers (8-2), but were able to battle back and get as close as 80-79 with 41 seconds left before the Panthers iced the game at the free throw line.

After a tough first half which saw the Eagles struggle both offensively and defensively against the visitors, ERAU trailed 48-38 at the intermission. DU added to its lead to start the second period, eventually taking a 54-40 lead on a Kolbe Kinghorn layup with 17:36 remaining. Rudy Bibb-Boyd started the Eagle rally with a triple on the next possession, and ERAU went on a 15-5 run over the next three minutes, trimming the Panther lead to 59-55 on an Elijah Jenkins three at the 14-minute mark.

With Drury leading 65-60 with just over 10 minutes to play, both offenses went cold, as neither team scored a point for the next two minutes until Nashad Mackey's layup made it a one possession game at the 8:15 mark, 65-62. The Eagles got a stop on the defensive end before Miljkovic made good on a jumper in the paint to get the Eagles within a point, but ERAU would not get any closer as the Panthers answered every Eagle basket with one of their own.

Drury led 80-75 after an Isaac Johnson jumper with two minutes left, but a Miljkovic layup and two Joshua Hawkins free throws made it 80-79 with 41 seconds to play. ERAU was forced to foul several times over the remaining seconds, finally putting Allen Billinger on the line with 15 seconds to play. Billinger made both free throws to extend the lead to three, and after the two teams traded turnovers in the next few seconds, the Eagles had Miljkovic's shot to tie it in the waning moments before Kamau Kinder grabbed the rebound off the miss and made two free throws to account for the 84-79 final.

The difference in the first half was the visitor's 10-0 advantage in points off turnovers. ERAU committed eight turnovers to just three for Drury, and the Panthers connected on eight triples in the opening period, while assisting on 14 of their 19 field goals in the half. Bibb-Boyd kept the Eagles in it with 12 first-half points, but a 16-4 run by Drury in the middle of the half pushed a 14-13 lead out to a 30-17 lead with nine minutes to go in the period before the Eagles were able to respond and keep it within 10 for the rest of the half.

Drury grabbed 40 rebounds to just 33 for the Eagles, just the second time all season ERAU had been outrebounded. The Panthers made 12 threes to just 10 for the Eagles, also going a perfect 10-for-10 at the charity stripe compared to a 13-for-16 effort for Embry-Riddle.

Bibb-Boyd finished with 20 points to lead all scorers, his fifth 20-point performance of the season. Hawkins registered an 11-point, 10-board double-double, while Miljkovic ended the night with 18 points, five rebounds and five assists. Mackey had 10 points, seven rebounds, and four assists for the Blue and Gold.

Embry-Riddle comes right back tomorrow night, Monday, Dec. 18 to take on Fort Valley State at 7 p.m. in the ICI Center.

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