Eureka cruises past Emmaus in men's basketball action
EUREKA, Ill. – Eureka College men's basketball senior guard Sam Feehan (Peoria, Ill./Notre Dame [Illinois Central]) drained 5-of-10 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, and added a 5-for-6 effort from the charity stripe, lifting the Red Devils to a 100-75 non-conference victory over the Emmaus Eagles, Tuesday night in the Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center.
The Red Devils, wrapping up a four-game span over five days, jumped out to an early 8-0 lead in the contest, backed by a pair of layups each by senior guard Greg Kent (Chicago, Ill./Richards [Blackhawk]) and sophomore forward Austin Ahnafield (El Paso, Ill./El Paso-Gridley). Eureka maintained a slim lead through the majority of the first half before pushing the lead to double-digits and settling with a 56-41 lead at the break.
A 13-2 run to open the second half extended the Eureka cushion to 28 points, the largest lead of the contest. Sophomore guard Cade Fawcett (Canton, Ill./Canton) sunk two baskets, a career-high, and freshman guard Dylan Troyer (Eureka, Ill./Eureka) scored a fast break layup and hit a pair of free throws for his first collegiate points. The Red Devils were able to clear the bench in the contest, with all 17 active players seeing the floor.
All five starters for Emmaus scored in double figures, led by a game-high 20 points from Skyler Sandry.
Freshman forward Alex Wiegand (Washington, Ill./Washington) provided 11 points and now has scored in double figures in three of his first four collegiate contests.
Eureka outrebounded Emmaus 49-23, while the Eagles claimed the turnover advantage 18-14.
The 100-point offensive outburst by the Red Devils was a first since a win at Greenville (101-97) on Jan. 28, 2012.
Eureka College Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage -.556 (35-63)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .235 (4-17)
Free Throw Percentage - .743 (26-35)
Feehan (17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists)
Kent (13 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists)
Kyle Robison (12 points, 5 rebounds)
Emmaus Bible College Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage - .400 (24-60)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .346 (9-26)
Free Throw Percentage - .818 (18-22)
Sandry (20 points)
Caleb Ruter (16 points, 4 assists)
Cody Nicely (12 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists)
What's Next?
Eureka (1-3) will continue non-conference action Saturday with their fourth road contest of the season against division-I Northern Illinois University. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the NIU Convocation Center. The game will be televised live on ESPN3.