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Washington University Tops Emory; Mark Edwards Moves Into Top-10 in NCAA Division III Wins

Washington University Tops Emory; Mark Edwards Moves Into Top-10 in NCAA Division III Wins
Posted: Feb 10, 2017

From Washington University Athletics

Washington University in St. Louis men's basketball coach Mark Edwards moved into the top-10 all-time in NCAA Division III wins following the fifth-ranked Bears 94-65 victory over Emory University Friday on Eliot Night in front of 1,701 fans at the Field House.

Edwards owns a 660-286 (.698) mark in 36 seasons at his alma mater, and has led the Bears to 13 University Athletic Association (UAA) titles and 19 NCAA Tournament appearances.

WashU improved its overall record to 18-3, 10-0 in the UAA, while Emory fell to 14-7, 5-5 in the UAA. The Bears have won 15-straight UAA games dating back to last year, the second-longest active conference winning streak in NCAA Division III.

Junior Andrew Sanders led five Bears in double figures with 21 points, while senior Clinton Hooks (15 points), junior Matt Highsmith (13 points) and juniors Kevin Kucera (12 points, eight assists) and David Schmelter (12 points, nine rebounds, three blocks) also scored in double figures. Sophomore Marcus Meyer added eight points on 4-of-4 shooting in eight minutes off the bench.

The Bears shot 49.3 percent (33-67) from the field, and had 21 assists and six blocks. WashU outrebounded Emory 49-31, including 29-10 in the second half. The Bears are 17-1 when outrebounding its opponent this season.

WashU led for almost the entire first half, and back-to-back threes from Hooks and Kucera gave the Bears a 16-11 advantage. After a bucket by Emory, WashU went on a 9-0 run to take the 25-13 lead with 9:33 to play.

Emory answered with seven-straight points to cut the lead to five (25-20), but a bucket by Highsmith stopped the run.

WashU lead by one (32-31) with 5:08 to play, and the Bears scored seven-straight point to extend the lead to 39-31. Schmelter threw down a monster dunk to make it 41-33, but Emory ended the half with five points to make it 41-39. 

Hooks led the Bears with 11 points, while Sanders added eight. WashU shot 42.9 percent from the field (15-35) in the first half.

WashU opened the second half on an 8-0 run to get the lead to double figures (49-39), and the lead grew to 26 (76-50) with 9:12 to play after a pair of free-throws by Highsmith. The Bears outscored Emory 35-11 in the opening 11 minutes of the second to blow the game open.

The Bears shot 56.3 percent (18-32) in the second half and hit 16-of-17 from the foul line. Sanders had 13 of his 21 points in the second half.

St. Louis native Austin DaGue had 16 points off the bench to lead Emory, while Christopher Avant added 13 points. Whit Rapp dished out 11 assists.

BEAR NOTEBOOK: WashU leads the all-time series with Emory, 47-13 … The Bears are 8-2 at home this year … WashU has won 12-straight games, its longest winning streak since the 2013-14 season … Emory is 7-6 away from home this season … Hooks is one three made shy of 100 for his career … The Bears shot a season-high 88.0 percent (22-25) from the foul line … Sanders has scored 20 or more points in four of the last five games.