Carter and Brown Combine for 35 in Big Win Over Principia, 64-49.
EUREKA, IL. – The Eureka men's basketball team took down Principia 64-49 at home on Saturday.
The Red Devils came out sporting a new (old) look on Saturday. The current team paid homage to the 1993-94 Eureka team which won the NAIA D2 national title by breaking out jerseys matching those worn in the 1994 national championship. Several members of the historic '94 team were in attendance and were honored during a special halftime presentation.
In front of a crowded Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center, the Red Devils came out of the gates swinging. It was a game which featured a couple of large changes in momentum. Eureka pulled ahead early. A Ben Carter dunk punctuated the end of an early scoring run where the Red Devils scored 12 points unanswered to go up 17-9. But the Panthers responded with an 8-point scoring run of their own to pull it even. At the end of a low-scoring first half, the two teams would head to the locker rooms with the Red Devils narrowly leading 26-22.
The game remained tightly contested halfway through the second period of play. With 10 minutes remaining, it was still a two-possession game, as Eureka led 42-37. But the final 10 minutes were all Eureka. Dylan Logsdon, Ben Carter, and Sam Dejesus each knocked down 3-point jumpers down the stretch, as the Red Devils pulled away to claim a 64-49 victory.
Ben Carter (Morton, Ill./Morton) and Peewee Brown (Peoria, Ill./Manual/Lincoln) led the way for the maroon and gold, combining for 35 points. Carter knocked down 4 of 8 3-pointers on his way to a 20 point game, going 8-for-14 from the field. Brown put up 15 points on the day and added a team-high 3 steals. He also shared in the Red Devils' efforts off the glass, tying teammate Cody Baer (Peoria, Ill./Dunlap/Southwestern Illinois) for a team-high 8 rebounds. Baer also contributed 9 points to Eureka's scoring.
Eureka guard Blake Logsdon (Meridian, Idaho/Mountain View) provided important minutes off the bench for the Red Devils, entering into the game to supply another 7 points and 3 assists. Dylan Logsdon (Meridian, Idaho/Mountain View) and Noah Persich (Peoria, Ill./Metamora/Parkland) each chipped in five points.
Principia ended the game with two players in double-digits. Jaquan Adams tallied a team-high 14 points and brought down a team-high 8 rebounds. Isaiah Parker notched an additional 12 points for the Panthers.
Saturday's win improves the Red Devils to 5-12 on the season and 3-7 in conference play. They travel to St. Louis on Wednesday to take on Webster (8-9, 6-4 SLIAC) at 7:30 PM CST. The Red Devils will look to duplicate their performance against the Gorlocks from earlier this season, having opened SLIAC play with a 70-63 victory against them back on December 6th.
