Jan. 27, 2008

* NAIA Scoreboard
* NAIA Weekly

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The ninth-ranked Embry-Riddle (Fla.) men's basketball team earned its 20th victory of the season, toppling No. 19 Warner Southern (Fla.) 77-62 in Florida Sun Conference action on Saturday (Jan. 26). The Eagles, now 20-2 overall, are tied with Warner Southern (17-7) for first place in the FSC as both teams have 5-1 league records.

Junior Tyler DeBord became the 14th member of the Embry-Riddle's 1,000-point club after scoring 20 points and collecting 14 rebounds. Eric Lorenzi and Denver Cobb each finished with 16 points and Rocky Pierre scored 11 points. Pierre was 8-of-8 from the free throw line and dished out five assists, while Lorenzi pulled down eight boards.

The Eagles won the tip and scored the first five points of the game. But the Royals quickly answered with five straight points of their own. Both teams battled hard in the first six minutes of play, which were characterized by end-to-end action, including four non-stop minutes of play.

At the 13:44 mark, Preston Adams, Brandon Hamilton and Allan Keen combined to lead the Royals on a 17-2 run. But the Eagles were undaunted and began their comeback with 8:34 left in the first half on a Danny Deaver three-pointer. The Eagles then scored six straight to make the score 29-24.

Both teams traded baskets over the next 5:30 and Warner Southern closed out the half carrying a 37-34 edge into the lockerroom at the halftime break.

The second half belonged to the Eagles. The Royals built their lead back up to seven points on a Hamilton jumper with 17:54 left, but those were the last points Warner Southern would score for the next five and a half minutes as a layup by Lorenzi marked the first of 20 unanswered Eagle points, resulting in a 56-43 Eagle lead.

The Eagles played stifling defense for the remainder of the game as the Royals managed only seven baskets in the last 12 minutes of play. Warner Southern had a seven-point spurt to cut the lead to five, but once again, the Eagle defense held its ground and didn't allow a single Royal point over the last 2:40, while the offense tallied the last 10 points of the contest.

Adams finished as the game's high scorer with 21, while Hamilton added 18 and Tommy Kleinschintz contributed 10.

The Eagles travel to West Palm Beach on Wednesday to take on Northwood. Game time is 7 p.m.