BOX SCORE
CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Riley Minix scored 27 points and Jordan Lathon added 20 as the Morehead State men's basketball team pulled away late and knocked off the Eastern Illinois Panthers 78-52 on the road Thursday.
Minix and Lathon's stellar scoring performances led the Eagles (13-4, 4-0 OVC) in the contest. Minix tacked on seven rebounds and two blocks and Lathon added 13 rebounds (tying his career high) and three assists. Eddie Ricks III added nine points off the bench. Drew Thelwell led the team with nine assists, upping his season total to an OVC-best 106.
The Eagles have now won six straight against EIU (8-9, 2-2 OVC) and have won 11 of their last 12 games this season. MSU is 27-3 in January games in the past three seasons.
MSU led by just seven with eight minutes to play but outscored the Panthers 25-6 in the final 8:12. Minix scored 20 of his game-high points in the second half, while Lathon had 18 points and 10 rebounds by halftime.
Morehead State did a great job disrupting Eastern Illinois shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. Minix's two rejections led the way individually for the Eagles.
Tiger Booker paced the home team with 20 points, while Kyndall Davis got 15 in the scoring book.
How It Happened
After jumping out to a 24-21 advantage, Morehead State went on an 8-0 run with 4:31 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Ricks, to increase its lead to 32-21. The Eagles then added two points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 36-23 advantage. Morehead State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down six shots to account for 18 of its 36 points.
Following intermission, Morehead State kept widening that lead, expanding it to 67-52 before going on an 11-0 run, finished off by Jerone Morton's three, to grow the lead to the final margin. EIU scored just two field goals in the final 8:42.
Game Notes
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Jordan Lathon notched an impressive double-double for the Eagles with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Lathon now has 20-point games in eight of the past 11 games.
» The Eagles shot well from three point range, knocking down 11 of 27 long range attempts.
» The Eagles held the Panthers to only 34 percent shooting from the field.
» Morehead State never trailed in the second half on its way to victory.
» Morehead State tallied 16 total assists in the game.
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Riley Minix and
Jordan Lathon carried the load for the Eagles, accounting for 60 percent of the scoring.
» Morehead State had a 46-29 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Eagles were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording five blocks as a team.
» Morehead State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 12 offensive boards in the game.
Up Next
Morehead State travels to face SIUE on Saturday at Noon ET in a game set to air on ESPNU.
