From Emory University Athletics
The Emory men's basketball team opened its 2014-15 season on a
highly successful note Tuesday evening, using senior Alex
Foster's big offensive night as the catalyst in rolling to a
victory over cross town foe Oglethorpe University. The Eagles
boosted their all-time record to 19-10 in season-opening contests
with a 104-77 decision over the Stormy Petrels who slipped to
2-1.
Foster lit up OU for a career-high 38 points, the third-highest
individual game total in school history, with three other Eagles
finishing in double digits. Foster knocked down15 (tying the
fourth-highest game total in school annals)-of 23 from the floor,
including four-of-five from three-point range, and four-of-five
from the charity stripe. Foster also paced all players with a
career-high 16 rebounds with that mark tying for
14th place on the program's single-game
list.
Junior Will Trawick aided in the triumph with 18 points,
his second-highest career total, 15 coming via five successful
three-point field goals in 10 tries. Emory ended the evening
draining 14-of-33 from beyond the arc, tying the seventh-highest
game total in school history. The senior duo of Josh
Schattie and Michael Florin rounded out Emory's
double-figure scorers with 11 and 10 points, respectively, with
Florin adding nine assists with just one turnover in 30 minutes of
action.
Emory held a 28-22 lead with 8:32 left in the opening stanza before
going on a 15-5 run, with senior Max Davis hitting a pair
of triples and Foster chipping in four points in that stretch, to
extend its advantage to 43-27 with just over four minutes remaining
in the stanza. A bucket by Florin gave the Eagles their second
18-point bulge in the half before OU closed the gap to 50-36 at
intermission. Foster pumped in 19 points in the first half, hitting
eight-of-14 from the floor, while Emory did considerable damage
with the long ball, sinking eight treys in 14
opportunities.
Emory kept the pressure on the Stormy Petrels in the second half,
shooting a blazing 60 percent from the floor (21-of-35) compared to
OU's 40.7 percent (11-of-27) en route to posting a 54-41 scoring
advantage. Oglethorpe drew to within 11 points following a three
pointer by Connor Smith, but a bucket by Foster capped an 8-0 Emory
burst that upped its lead to 64-45 with 15:20 remaining. Oglethorpe
stayed within striking distance, but Foster scored six points
during an 11-5 Emory run that pushed the Eagles to a 93-72 lead
with 3:45 on the clock.
NOTES – Head coach Jason Zimmerman is now 6-2 in season opening games at Emory … The team's 104 points represented the second-highest mark for a season opener … The highest point total by an Emory squad in a season opener came in a 113-106 setback to Salisbury on Nov. 16, 1990 … Foster now has four career double-doubles … Emory is now 4-1 vs. Oglethorpe in season-opening contests … The win boosted the Eagles record at home to 44-7 over the last 51 games.