Four days after taking down first-place Lafayette, the men's basketball team rode a strong second half to beat the Holy Cross Crusaders 62-46 last night in Worcester, Mass.
The Eagles were up to a tough challenge heading into the game. In the first meeting of the season, Crusader center Tim Clifford proved to be too tough for the smaller AU defenders to handle down the stretch en route to a game-high 24 points.
But the apparent disadvantage was nonexistent from the start as junior forward Jordan Nichols had seven points at the break to lead the Eagles. Meanwhile, the Eagles locked down on defense, holding the Crusaders to just nine of 24 shootings.
However, ball control was an issue for AU, as 11 AU turnovers led to 14 Holy Cross points, allowing the Crusaders to stay close. Nevertheless, the Eagles maintained a slight 21-18 lead after 20 minutes of play.
While the first half might have been a struggle, the Eagles dominated in the second half. They made two-thirds of their shots (14-21) in the half and, for the second straight game, shot over 50 percent from the field overall.
Meanwhile, the Eagles continued their strong defensive play, as Holy Cross made just eight of their 30 attempted shots in the second half and just over 31 percent of their shots for the game. The Eagles slowly but surely put the game out of reach for the Crusaders, outscoring them 41-28 in the second half.
Junior Garrison Carr stepped up big once again for the Eagles, taking over the game when it mattered most. Carr scored 16 second-half points and had a game-high of 22 to lead the Eagles. Brian Gilmore was the only other Eagle with double-figures in scoring, hitting three three-pointers and scoring 12 points overall.
Once again, the Eagles also out-rebounded their opponent. Junior forward Cornelio Guibunda had seven rebounds to lead AU, which out-rebounded the Crusaders 32-26. Meanwhile, junior Bryce Simon also had a game-high five assists while giving up only one turnover.
With the win, the Eagles improved to 5-3 in the conference and 13-10 overall. The victory, which was the first over Holy Cross in their last nine meetings, also moves AU just one half-game behind No. 1 Lafayette. The Eagles return home this Sunday to take on Lehigh University at Bender Arena, a game that can also be seen on ESPNU.
