DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Embry-Riddle men's basketball dished out a blistering offensive performance on Saturday afternoon in the 104-80 rout of Saint Leo inside the ICI Center for the Eagles' (2-2) Sunshine State Conference opener. It was all gas and no brakes early for Embry-Riddle, racing to a 20-0 advantage in what would carry momentum towards Head Coach
Steve Ridder's 800th career win at the helm of the men's basketball program.
In his 36th season as the head coach of the Eagles, Ridder has become one of the winningest active coaches in all collegiate basketball. His 800 wins have elevated him into the top 35 on the all-time collegiate men's basketball career wins list.
Jared Berry led the Eagles in another career night as he paced the ERAU offense with a personal best 27 points on 10-for-19 shooting and four three-pointers, adding five assists in the process. Three others produced double-digit points as
Dawson Barr went 5-of-8 from three and 3-for-3 from the foul line for 18 points, followed by 17 from
Jack Klinger and 12 from
Chalier Torres. The Eagles put together season-best performances across six stat lines, controlling the game for all 40 minutes.
RECORDS
Embry-Riddle: 2-2, (1-0 SSC)
Saint Leo: 1-2, (0-1 SCC)
GAME NOTES
- Embry-Riddle has moved to a five-game winning streak over Saint Leo, notching an 8-2 record over the last 10 meetings.
- Since 2016, the Eagles have posted a 9-10 record against the Lions.
- In back-to-back seasons, ERAU has opened conference play with a win.
KEY PERFORMERS
Embry-Riddle
Saint Leo
- Player 1: Donovan Hill - 25 pts, 8 reb
- Player2: Dominic Commisso - 17 pts
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- Embry-Riddle raced out the gate with a 20-0 run in the first six-plus minutes of action before Saint Leo scored its first field goal at the 13:37 mark.
- Berry energized the run with seven points followed by a pair of long-range jumpers from Barr.
- After the 20-0 run, the Eagles held control of the lead by at least 16 or more points for the remainder of the half.
- Berry's 15 points led the way in the first 20 minutes, closing out the period in style by scoring ERAU's final two buckets of the half from beyond the arc to finish shooting 6-of-13 from the field.
- Torres sparked some impressive play on the offensive end of the floor, producing 11 points while going 4-of-4 from the field in seven minutes of action.
- The Eagles shot 48.7% (19-of-39) from the field in the first half and knocked down eight three-pointers to hold a 49-32 lead at the break.
- ERAU's defense limited Saint Leo to just four scorers while on the other end, eight Eagles found the basket.
- Embry-Riddle held a 24-15 advantage off the glass.
Second Half
- Saint Leo chipped away at the deficit and cut the Embry-Riddle lead to 12 at 58-46 with 16:20 remaining.
- Fortunately for the Eagles, that was the closest the Lions would manage for the game.
- The Eagles improved in the second half, scoring 55 points while shooting 59.4% (19-of-31) from the field.
- Three players notched double figures with Klinger scoring 13 points and finishing the half on 6-of-8 shooting from the field.
- Barr went 3-for-4 from three for 12 points while Berry added 12 points.
- Embry-Riddle's bench scored 18 points in the second half.
INSIDE THE STATS
- Embry-Riddle finished the game with season-best totals in six categories.
- The Eagles scored a season-high 104 points on 38 made field goals for a 53.5% field goal percentage.
- ERAU poured in a season-high 16 three-pointers, shooting 45.7% from beyond the arc.
- Embry-Riddle dished out 23 assists on 38 made field goals, assisting on 60.5% of all buckets.
- Turnovers were limited to nine giveaways for Embry-Riddle while Saint Leo gave up 12.
- Defensively, the Eagles collected six steals and three blocks, holding SLU to just 45.2% (28-of-62) from the field and 47.6% (10-of-21) from three.
- ERAU owned the glass with a 41-30 rebounding advantage.
- Individually, Berry finished with a career-high 27 points, adding five assists, and four rebounds, nearing the 500-point mark for his career.
- Barr nearly matched his career-best, scoring 18 on 5-for-8 shooting from three and 3-of-3 from the foul line.
- Clarens Pierre led the rebounding efforts with eight boards, adding five points and three assists to the stat sheet.
- In his freshman debut, Relja Vranesevic went 2-for-2 from the field, finishing with four points and two assists.
UP NEXT
Embry-Riddle returns to action in a week, hosting Valdosta State on Nov. 29 for a 2:00 p.m. ET contest in the ICI Center.
