Tuesday, November 21, 2006

MOREHEAD, Ky. (Nov. 21, 2006) - Hitting on 54 percent of their shots in the second half and posting a 50 percent clip from 3-point range for the game, Morehead State raced past ETSU 77-56 Tuesday night in non-conference men's basketball action inside Johnson Arena.

Guards Quentin Pryor and Cordaryl Ballard led the outside attack for the Eagles, hitting on a combined 7-of-9 from beyond the arc. Pryor scored a game-high 24 points, while Ballard pitched in 10. Along with that outside tandem, forward Shaun Williams netted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds to aid the Eagles' cause.

"In the Eastern Kentucky and Auburn games we did a lot of things right and looked good at times, but tonight we didn't do anything right," said ETSU head coach Murry Bartow, whose team dropped to 2-3 while watching Morehead State improve to 2-2. "We wanted to build some momentum in this game going into the Texas trip, but obviously we didn't do that either."

The Bucs once again played well out of the gate, leading 12-10 with 13:28 left in the half. However, after a 3-pointer by Pryor made it 13-12, the Eagles never looked back, slowly building a lead of as many as 11 points and ending the half with a nine-point advantage at 38-29.

Senior forward Brad Nuckles (Council, Va.) scored the first basket after the intermission to make it a seven-point game at 38-31, but that would be as close as it would get the rest of the way as the Morehead State shooters took over. In all, the Eagles would hit on 55 percent of their 3-point attempts in the second half and finish the game with a 21-point advantage.

For ETSU, Nuckles led the way with 14 points and eight rebounds, while freshman guard Mike Smith (Vandalia, Mo.) scored 10 points. The Bucs shot just 39 percent from the floor and were out-rebounded by the Eagles 37-29.

Missing from the equation Tuesday night was ETSU freshman guard Dequan Twilley (Shelbyville, Tenn.), who missed the game for personal/family reasons and is listed as day-to-day. Twilley, who is averaging eight assists a game, was obviously missed as the Bucs managed just 11 assists on the night. In the Bucs' previous four games, the team had averaged 17 assists a game.

The Bucs will return to action Friday at the South Padre Island Invitational, taking on Sam Houston State beginning at 8 p.m. (EST). The game will be available on live video streaming at ETSUBucs.com.