MELBOURNE, Fla. - The Embry-Riddle men's basketball team returned to the win column on Wednesday afternoon at the Florida Tech Winter Classic, breezing past Columbia International, 93-69. The Eagles (8-6) exploded for a 20-point halftime lead and cruised to a 24-point win over the Rams (6-7) to wrap up their 2018-19 non-conference slate.
The Blue and Gold shot a blistering 60 percent from the field for the game, going 37-for-62 overall and 7-for-13 from long range, both marks were season-high clips for the Eagles.
Luka Majstorovic continued his dominant streak for the Eagles, leading the way with 22 points and 10 rebounds, his fourth double-double of the season, and third in the last four outings. Majstorovic has averaged 24 points and 10.5 boards over the Eagles' last four contests.
Freshman
Chris Murray joined in on the double-double party with a career-high 18 points to go along with 11 rebounds. Murray went 8-for-12 from the field and grabbed a game-high six offensive boards. As a team, the Eagles outrebounded the Rams, 38-22.
The Eagles took control of the game midway through the first half, turning an 11-11 tie into a 29-16 lead in a little over five minutes, capped by
Nick Heard's triple at the 9:31 mark.
A few minutes later, with Embry-Riddle ahead 31-22, the Eagles went on a 15-0 run to take a commanding, 46-22 advantage. ERAU held the Rams scoreless for more than four minutes of game time, getting a couple triples from
Elijah Jenkins, five points from
Tylin Lockett-Fuller and a
Cj Henagan jumper in the paint.
The lead was 52-32 at the break for the Blue and Gold and the Rams never got closer than 14 as the Eagles were able to push the cushion out to as many as 26 before the 93-69 final score.
Joining Majstorovic and Murray in double-figures was Jenkins with 11 points to go along with a game-high five assists. ERAU dished out 16 assists, it's second-highest total of the year.
The Eagles are off for Christmas break and will return to the court on Dec. 29 when they jump right back into Sunshine State Conference play against Tampa. Game time is set for 6 p.m. in the ICI Center.
