For Immediate Release

charleston, illinois

November 3, 2006

Eureka surprises D-I EIU with halftime lead

If Thursday night's exhibition game against Division I Eastern Illinois University is any indication, Red Devils fans are in for an exciting season of EC men's basketball. Eureka College humbled the partisan crowd in Charleston in the first half, taking a 31-30 halftime lead into the locker rooms. Eventually, the Panthers' depth and domination of the boards prevailed over the foul depleted Red Devils 71-55.

Eureka only trailed twice in the entire first half. The first time came at 7-5, but EC immediately responded with its best run of the night. Sophomore transfer Randy Ledbetter (Washburn, Ill./Lowpoint-Washburn) found senior Mike Fredericks (Washburn, Ill./Lowpoint-Washburn) for a lay up with an over-the-head wheel pass to tie the score. That was followed by back-to-back treys by sophomore Brady Wildenradt (Delavan, Ill./HS) and an old fashioned three-point play by junior Matt McComb (Fairview, Ill./Spoon River Valley). At the 11:13 mark of the first half, EC had its largest lead of the night at 16-8.

The Red Devils only scored four points over the next seven minutes, but stayed in or close to the lead thanks to solid defense and several missed lay ups by EIU. The score was tied four times in the final 4:21 of the half, but Ledbetter put EC on top with a three-pointer and Eureka held on for a one-point halftime edge. If it would not have been for last year's Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year Mike Robinson, the Panthers would have really been in a pickle. He accounted for 13 of Eastern Illinois' 30 points. The rest of the Panthers shot just 27 percent in the half.

Third-year Eureka head coach Jay Bruer noted that his team benefitted from several opportunities EIU missed from in close on fast breaks, but was overall pleased with the transition defense

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"We had 21 turnovers, but most weren't silly or sloppy on bad passes," said Bruer. "Secondly, we still have a long way to go, but offensively I liked a lot of the shots we got. If we to look to the post more, that creates a better position to get back. Stopping Eastern's transition was a key for us."

Wildenradt, who scored in double figures once in 26 games last season, was nails all night for EC. He led Eureka with 17 points, canning five treys. His three early in the second half gave the Red Devils their final lead on the game at 34-33. The Panthers seemed to take over with a 17-4 run to go ahead 50-38, but even then the Red Devils refused to whither. Wildenradt hit two more treys and senior A.J. Richard (Gibson City, Ill./GCMS) made two field goals during a 10-2 spurt that pulled EC to with 52-48 with eight minutes to play.

"Brady had a nice game," added Bruer. "He showed he was capable of handling their defensive pressure. I liked his composure handling the ball. We're looking for him to develop consistency this year."

Eureka had one possession with a chance to slice into the lead even further, but Jake Byrne came up big for the Panthers. He blocked a shot and scored the next six points to jump-start a 10-0 EIU run that put the game out of the reach of the Red Devils. Still, the 71-55 loss was an impressive start for Eureka, who surrendered on average 79.2 points per game to Division III opponents last season.

Richard led Eureka with eight rebounds and was second in points with 14. McComb finished with eight. Ledbetter dished out five assists and grabbed four boards in 17 minutes. Eureka was whistled for 26 fouls and had two players foul out.

Robinson led all players with 20 points. Billy Parrish pulled down 11 rebounds as EIU enjoyed a 48-33 advantage on the boards. Jon'Tee Willhite recorded seven assists and was instrumental in limiting Eureka's leading scorer from last season, Tim Peffer (Hinckley, Ill./Hinckley-Big Rock), to seven points on 3-of-13 shooting.

"It was nice to have the opportunity to play a D-I program and it's always important to get the chance to play better competition," said Bruer. "It was great to stay in the ball game, but does it get us better for November 17?"

Eureka still has two weeks before beginning regular season play at the Manchester College Tip-Off Tournament. EC takes on the hosts at 8:00 pm on Friday, November 17 in North Manchester, Indiana.

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For More Information Contact:

Brian Sullivan

Sports Information Director

Eureka College

300 E. College Avenue

Eureka, Illinois 61530

309-467-6456

bsullivan@eureka.edu