McLaurn's Perfect Half Boosts Tritons in SSC Opener

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The first half for Drushaun McLaurn couldn't have gone much better.

The senior went a perfect 11-of-11 from the floor in the first 20 minutes of Eckerd's Sunshine State Conference home opener against Saint Leo on Wednesday, then helped ignite a key run in the second half as the Tritons held off the Lions for an 83-69 win.

McLaurn ended the night with 36 points, one shy of his career high, as EC won its fifth straight game over Saint Leo.

HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 83, Saint Leo 69
Records: Eckerd 6-1 (1-0 SSC), Saint Leo 2-5 (0-1 SSC)

KEY MOMENTS

• After the teams swapped the lead early, the Tritons went on a 16-2 run midway through the first half for a 29-18 lead with 7:45 remaining.  McLaurn scored 10 of the 16 points in the run.
• Eckerd's first-half lead reached as many as 14 points (35-21) after an Admir Radoncic basket with 5:12 left in the half.  However, EC made only two of its next seven shots - one of which was a corner 3-pointer by McLaurn as the shot clock expired - while Saint Leo trimmed the deficit to seven by halftime.
• The Lions threatened to take the lead early in the second half, pulling within a point after a dunk by Junior Searcy, but Eckerd responded with three straight 3-pointers - two from Myron Hagins - to kickstart a 15-0 run that was capped by another 3-pointer, this time by Marquis Gilbert.
• EC still led by 14 points with 6:00 left before Saint Leo went on a 10-2 run over the next three-and-a-half minutes to cut the Triton lead to six.  SLU then forced a turnover via a steal on Eckerd's next possession, but Marco Behori stole the ball right back and threw it ahead to Myron Hagins for a dunk.
• After two Lion free throws, McLaurn drained a jumper in the lane to give Eckerd an eight-point lead once more.  The Lions were soon forced to foul, and the Tritons secured the victory by going 8-of-8 from the free throw line in the final minute.

NOTES AND NUMBERS

• McLaurn's 36 points came up one short of his career high of 37, set last year in the NCAA Tournament against Florida Southern.  He went 11-for-11 from the floor and 3-of-3 from the free throw line in the first half.
• Hagins also had a big night with a career-high 18 points aided by four 3-pointers.
• Eckerd's struggles from the free throw line before the final minute helped give Saint Leo a chance to stick around.  Before going 8-for-8 in the closing moments, EC was 10-of-24.
• The win was the Tritons' fifth in a row over Saint Leo and fourth straight in the McArthur Center.

UP NEXT
Eckerd travels to Florida Tech on Saturday for a 4:00 PM tip-off.