SUNDAY'S SCORES
@Morehead State 114, Union (Ky.) 67
@West Virginia 74,
Eastern Kentucky 67
MOREHEAD STATE 114, UNION (KY.) 67
MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Morehead State men's basketball team placed eight players in double figures and forced 33 turnovers in a 114-67 victory over Union (Ky.) on Sunday afternoon at Johnson Arena.
The Ohio Valley Conference Eagles snap a three-game skid and improve to 6-8 on the season, while the NAIA Bulldogs fall to 7-7 on the year. MSU also improved to 32-10 all-time against UC.
Senior Milton Chavis led the Eagles with 15 points and grabbed six rebounds. Junior Drew Kelly also tallied a season-high 15 points and recorded three blocks, while senior Devon Atkinson posted 11 points and dished out nine assists. Sophomore Angelo Warner finished with 11 points and handed out seven dimes.
Senior Jason Holmes registered a career-high 12 points and pulled down a team-best seven rebounds, while junior Bruce Reed also recorded 12 points and collected six boards off the bench.
Junior Chad Posthumus added 12 points and grabbed six rebounds, while true freshman Cordell James found the bottom of the net on all four of his shots, including two threes, en route to 10 points.
Sophomore Tyler Wagner led the Bulldogs with a game-best 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including 7-of-10 from the three-point line. Sophomore Deante Johnson chipped in with 11 points and a game-best nine rebounds for UC.
Morehead State started the game on a 21-8 run and never looked back. The Eagles shot 51 percent (42-of-82) from the floor and 43 percent (9-of-21) from the three-point line. Union was held to just 36 percent (19-of-53) from the field.
Morehead State posted advantages of 48-33 in rebounds, 60-18 in paint points, 52-18 in bench points and 36-7 in fast-break points. The Eagles connected on 72 percent from the charity stripe, while the Bulldogs hit 77 percent.
The win was Morehead State's largest since a 123-83 decision over NAIA opponent Kentucky Christian on Nov. 18, 2005. It was also MSU's second 100-point performance this season, including a 100-48 victory over NAIA foe Alice Lloyd (Ky.) on Nov. 15.
WEST VIRGINIA 74, EASTERN KENTUCKY 67
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Eastern Kentucky overcame a 16-point second half deficit to take a 2-point lead with less than five minutes to play, but couldn’t hold off West Virginia in a 74-67 loss on Sunday.
The Mountaineers (7-5) went on top by 16, 38-22, on a dunk by Deniz Kilicli with 18:36 left in the game. However, the Colonels (10-3) answered with a 13-3 run to get back in the game. A lay-up by Mike DiNunno cut the deficit to nine. Tarius Johnson came up with a steal on the ensuing inbounds play and Glenn Cosey knocked down a three-pointer to cap the run and make it a 6-point game with 15:31 to go.
With just over 10 minutes remaining, EKU closed the gap further. Cosey connected on a lay-up and was fouled. He missed the free throw, but the Colonels came up with the offensive rebound and Orlando Williams hit a three-pointer to bring the visitors to within two, 52-50. A second three-pointer by Williams 30 seconds later made it a 1-point game, 54-53, in favor of the Mountaineers.
Williams, a transfer from Miami (Ohio) made his debut for the Colonels. The junior made his first two shots from the field before finishing with 10 points.
West Virginia pushed back out in front by six before Eastern Kentucky made another run. Eric Stutz and Morgantown native Ryan Parsons keyed a 10-2 Colonel spurt. After Parsons came into the game, Stutz got the run started with a lay-up. Parsons drew a charge on the other end leading to a Cosey three-pointer. After WVU made a pair of free throws, Parsons nailed a three-pointer and Stutz connected on two free throws to turn a 59-53 deficit into a 63-61 EKU lead.
West Virginia scored the next five points and led the rest of the way. A three-pointer by Cosey, his fifth of the game, with 24 seconds left to play got Eastern Kentucky to within three, 70-67, but Juwan Staten went to the line and hit two free throws to seal the victory for the Mountaineers.
Cosey led all players with 21 points. Stutz finished with a team-best eight rebounds and four assists. Staten and Gary Browne led WVU with 17 points each. Aaric Murray had eight points and 12 rebounds.
After shooting 28 percent in the first half, the Colonels scorched the nets for 63 percent in the second half. West Virginia made just 33 percent of its second half shots and went 0-for-5 from behind the arc. Both teams committed 13 turnovers, but EKU was out-rebounded by 11.