Box Score ASHLAND, Ohio – The Eagles welcomed the GLIAC North's top team, Ferris State, to Kates Gymnasium on Saturday (Feb. 12) afternoon. The Bulldogs are led by All-American forward Justin Keenan, but the Eagles limited him to just nine points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
It was the three-point shot that helped lift Ferris State to its 83-67 win. The Bulldogs hit 9-of-20 three-pointers against the GLIAC's top team at defending the three-point shot. Six different players hit a three-pointer, led by Matt DeHart, who was 3-for-7 from long range. He finished with nine points, five assists and four rebounds.
Lou Williams led the Bulldogs with 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting.
The Eagles (12-10, 6-9) also out-rebounded the Bulldogs (18-5, 14-2 GLIAC), 38-33, but were outshot, 54.4 percent to 37.9 percent for the game.
Sophomore center Evan Yates (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills) drew the assignment against Keenan and did a nice job on the defensive end. He also led the Eagles with 17 points and a team-high eight boards.
The Eagles never led as the Bulldogs led 11-4 at the outset. The Eagles scored the next six points, but Ferris State went on a 9-2 run to take a 20-12 lead with 12:07 to play.
AU kept the margin manageable until late in the first half when the Bulldogs closed with a 17-9 run heading into the intermission to lead 43-32.
The Eagles trimmed it to eight points after a basket by Yates with 17:08 to play, but the Bulldogs went on a 15-0 run over the next 5:18 to put the game out of reach.
Senior forward Kale Richardson (Carroll, Ohio/Bloom-Carroll) scored 16 points as the Eagles' only other player in double figures. He also tallied seven rebounds to give him 722 for his career. He is 12 shy of tying Greg Emmons for second on AU's all-time rebounding list.
Senior forward Justin Garris (Ledgewood, N.J./NJIT) had eight points off the bench to go with three rebounds. Sophomore guard David Harris (Cincinnati, Ohio/Florida) scored eight points, pulled down four boards and handed out three assists.
Ferris State's Darien Gay had 14 points and five assists. He knocked down two three-pointers. Kenny Brown shot 4-for-8 from the field off the bench for 12 points with four assists.
The Eagles have a critical road trip upcoming in the Upper Peninsula next week. AU opens the trip with a 5:30 p.m. tip-off on Thursday (Feb. 17) against Michigan Tech, which leads the Eagles by one game in the GLIAC standings for the last couple of spots in the GLIAC Tournament. The head-to-head matchup would decide the tie-breaker for placement in the tournament.
AU will then travel to Northern Michigan on Saturday (Feb. 19) for a 1 p.m. game.
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