For the second consecutive year, the men's basketball team opened Saturday its season with a win, defeating St. Francis University 75-68.
The Eagles started the game strong, building a 19-point halftime lead over St. Francis. AU had a 42-23 lead due to their 60 percent shooting accuracy in the first half. Junior guard Garrison Carr led the offensive charge against SFU, hitting six of eight shots along with five of seven three-pointers, amounting to 17 first-half points. Teammate Derrick Mercer helped to rack up the score against St. Francis with 10 first-half points.
With three free throws, SFU came back strong in the second period with a point gain. After high performances by both teams, the pace of the game slowed with each team becoming more deliberate in their possessions.
For much of the next 6 minutes, AU maintained a steady nine- to 11-point lead over St. Francis. The Eagles were challenged to hold their lead when a pair of free throws cut the lead to seven and was immediately followed by a three-pointer, cutting the lead to a nail-biting four. This was the closest the opponents got to catching up with the Eagles since the 17:19 mark of the first half.
As time was running out, SFU fouled Mercer and Motnii, forcing the game to become a free-throw game. Eagle Motnii helped lead AU to their victory, scoring 92 percent of the time from the line.
At the end of the game, Mercer finished with a career-high 22 points while teammate Carr finished with 21 points and four assists.
"It's so hard to win on the road," head coach Jeff Jones said in a press release. "It's great for this team because I really didn't know what to expect with so many newcomers. Still, there's still a lot of work to do."
The team will travel Tuesday again for another away game at Loyola, looking to add another win to their opening season.
