DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Embry-Riddle improved to 5-0 on the young season on Saturday night, having no issue with Auburn Montgomery in the final game of the 2019 Daytona Mitsubishi / Kia Shootout, 115-80. The Eagles scored in triple-digits for the third straight game, marking the first time since 2000 the Blue and Gold had done that. The Warhawks (2-3) couldn't keep up with the hot-shooting Eagles who finished the game with 20 three-pointers, one shy of the program record and 32 assists, the eighth-most in team history.
It was a very balanced effort from the home team as six Eagles scored in double-figures, led by
Elijah Jenkins' 18 points.
Luka Majstorovic had one of the best games of his career, scoring 15 points with nine rebounds and a career-high nine blocks, flirting with, what would have been, the fourth triple-double in ERAU basketball history. Majstorovic's nine rejections are the second-most blocks by an Eagle, one shy of David Butler's 10 against Maryland Bible in 2010. Both
Chris Murray and
Nick Heard scored 16 points for Embry-Riddle, while
Tylin Lockett-Fuller scored 15 and
Romeo Crouch went for 11 points, nine assists and four steals.
Majstorovic started the scoring with a jumper at the 19:09 mark, and ERAU never trailed from then on, going up 10-4 on an and-one from Crouch. A
David Park trey at the 12:33 mark made it 21-9, and Murray followed with his first career three-pointer...he would go on to hit two more on the night for the Blue and Gold.
AUM made a mini-run to get within seven at 24-17, but starting at the 7:34 mark with ERAU leading 29-20, the Eagles went on a 28-13 run to end the half, sparked by three-pointers from Heard, Jenkins, Lockett-Fuller and Majstorovic, with Heard's jumper from beyond the arc with four seconds left, punctuating the half for ERAU and giving them a 57-33 lead.
The home team never allowed the visitors to get within striking distance in the second period, pushing the lead out to as many as 38 when Lockett-Fuller nailed a three to make it 91-53.
Makerere Williams was efficient in just six minutes, scoring eight points and grabbing two rebounds for ERAU, while
Max Michalski went for five points and two boards in just four minutes of action.
Eight different Eagles hit a three-pointer, with both Jenkins and Heard connecting on four each. During this early five-game stretch, the Eagles are averaging nearly 14 made three's per game.
Embry-Riddle will open Sunshine State Conference play on Wednesday, Nov. 20 when Florida Southern comes to the ICI Center. The Mocs are 3-0 on the year. Tip is set for 7:30 p.m.
