TUESDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 83, @Clemson 56
@Notre Dame 78,
Eastern Illinois 58
@Tennessee State 114, Oakwood 76
@Cal State Bakersfield 74,
Western Illinois 58
CLEMSON 83, MOREHEAD STATE 56
CLEMSON, S.C. - The Eagles put up a valiant fight, but a quick start and a tenacious defense were too much for the Morehead State Men's Basketball team to overcome at Clemson Tuesday night as the Tigers defeated MSU 83-56.
MSU slipped to 1-3 on the season, while Clemson is 3-0.
Junior guard Davion Cunningham led MSU with season-highs of 18 points and seven rebounds. Tamaury Releford finished with eight points. MSU out-rebounded Clemson 41-40 after the Tigers came in with a +17 rebound margin.
The Tigers opened up a 20-5 lead and held the Eagles in single digits until 5:54 left in the first half when Cunningham dropped in a three-ball. Clemson led 39-20 at the halftime break.
MSU trimmed the deficit back to 43-28 with 17:20 left in the game before a three-pointer by the Tigers quelled the mini rally. Clemson held its lead throughout, pulling ahead by 20+ on a couple of occasions. A late 11-0 run pushed the margin over 30.
MSU shot 34 percent for the night and 73 percent at the free throw line, while the home team hit 47 percent, including 11 three-pointers.
MSU also only had 11 turnovers on the night and just four in the second half.
RJ Godfrey led the Tigers with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.
NOTRE DAME 78, EASTERN ILLINOIS 58
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Eastern Illinois held a brief first half lead and trailed by three at the half before Notre Dame warmed up from 3-point range in the second half to beat the Panthers 78-58.
Freshman Markus Blackwell gave EIU a 19-18 lead in the first half with a 3-pointer with 7:03 to play in the first.
Kooper Jacobi put the Panthers up two late in the first half with a 3-pointer, one of four the senior knocked down during his 20-point night.
The Fighting Irish (3-0) closed the half with a five point run with Markus Burton converting a three point play for the final first half points. Burton led Notre Dame with 21 points, one of three Irish players in double figures.
In the second half Braeden Shrewsberry began to warm up from outside as Notre Dame hit 7-of-15 from 3-point range in the second half with Shrewsberry going 6-of-8 in the game to score 18 points.
Preston Turner scored 14 points for EIU while Zion Fruster finished in double figures for the third straight game with 11 points.
EIU fell to 1-2 on the season. Malik Olafioye pulled down a team high five rebounds as Notre Dame won the battle on the glass by a 40-24 margin. Carson Towt had 11 rebounds for Notre Dame.
TENNESSEE STATE 114, OAKWOOD 76
NASHVILLE - The Tennessee State men's basketball team saw all five starters score in double figures and defeated the Oakwood Ambassadors 114-76 at home Tuesday.
The Tigers (2-1) had six players score in double figures, led by Aaron Nkrumah, who had 25 points. Travis Harper II tacked on 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and Khalil London helped out with 14 points and four assists off of the bench.
Led by Antoine Lorick III's three offensive rebounds, Tennessee State did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 14 boards that resulted in 24 second chance points.
Tennessee State forced 15 Oakwood turnovers while committing 13 themselves in Tuesday's game. The Tigers turned those takeaways into 22 points on the other end of the floor. Dante Harris' three steals led the way for Tennessee State.
After jumping out to a 31-28 advantage, Tennessee State went on a 5-0 run with 7:29 left in the first half to increase its lead to 36-28. The Tigers then added nine points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 55-38 advantage. Tennessee State did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 30 of its 55 points close to the basket.
Following intermission, Tennessee State kept widening that lead, expanding it to 96-68 before going on a 9-0 run to grow the lead to 105-68 with 4:25 to go in the contest. The Tigers kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 114-76 win. Tennessee State took care of business in the paint, recording 30 of its 59 points in the lane.
CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD 74, WESTERN ILLINOIS 58
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Western Illinois men's basketball battled through a tight first half but couldn't overcome a strong second-half push from CSU Bakersfield, falling 74-58 Tuesday night inside the Icardo Center.
The Leathernecks (0-3) trailed 38-32 at halftime after an opening period that saw them knock down five threes and trade leads with the Roadrunners throughout. CSU Bakersfield (2-1) used a 10-2 run early in the second half to gain separation and held Western to just nine made field goals after the break.
Francis Okwuosah led the Leathernecks with a team-high 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, 3 of 4 of his made threes coming in the first half before he fouled out late. Tyran Cook and Isaiah Griffin each added 10 points, with Griffin grabbing seven rebounds. Antwaun Massey contributed five points, five boards, and a team-best four blocks, while Lucas Lorenzen scored eight points and knocked down all four of his free throws.
Western Illinois shot 37 percent (20-for-54) from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc (8-of-16) but was out-rebounded 37-34 and surrendered 26 points off 17 turnovers.