ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Five different players racked up double-digit points Tuesday night as the Eckerd College men's basketball team etched another "W" in the books, this time against Franklin (Ind.) College, 94-77.
After an eight-day break from play, EC Head Coach
Tom Ryan said he was more than ready to get back on the court.
"It was hard waiting that long, especially coming off a loss," Ryan said. "But we had a size and athleticism advantage over them [Franklin], and when we moved the ball, we were able to penetrate and get to the basket."
Senior
Josh Snodgrass (20 points, 11 rebounds) and junior
Malcolm Brunner Jr. (19 points, 15 rebounds) led Eckerd's (2-2, 0-0 SSC) offense, each posting their first double-doubles of the season and made up for senior
Alex Bodney's absence after an injury during practice sidelined him for tonight's game.
The Tritons jumped out to a commanding advantage in the first half, leading by 23, 42-19.
With nearly 12 minutes remaining in the half, freshman
Shane Phillips hit a jumper to trigger a 17-0 run for the Tritons. The run lasted just over six minutes before Franklin's (3-2, 0-0 HCAC) Troy Porter banked in a free throw to end the streak.
Entering the second half, the Grizzlies went on a 10-0 run of their own to cut Eckerd's lead, 42-27. Franklin senior Bailey Howard owned six of the 10 points. Howard scored 30 points on the night, all of which came in the second half.
Later in the second half, a layup from Howard brought Franklin within 10 of Eckerd -- the smallest margin of the second half between both sides.
However, it would not be enough to hold off Eckerd who had a clear size advantage over the Grizzlies.
As the minutes ticked down, the Tritons did not let up, and with a minute left on the clock, Brunner Jr. slammed two dunks within 25 seconds. Brunner Jr. notched four dunks on the night, while sophomore
Jerrick Stevenson added one.
The Tritons are back in action at the McArthur Center over Thanksgiving Weekend as Eckerd will host the Eckerd College Thanksgiving Classic.
The Tritons will first face the University of Puerto Rico-Bayamon on Friday at 7:30 p.m. EST. Live stats and video will be available on EckerdTritons.com.
