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For Immediate Releaseeureka, illinois
February 11, 2009
Red Devils club Blackburn 73-52, now 8-2 in last 10
After going their first 19 games without one, the Eureka College Red Devils won their second consecutive game by over 20 points, running Blackburn College out of the Reagan Center by the count of 73-52. It was their eighth win in their last 10 games and fourth in a row.
Blackburn (4-17, 2-10 SLIAC) has played many league contender tough this season, but that was not the case on this night. Eureka (10-11, 8-5 SLIAC) stepped on the visiting Beavers' throats early and often on the defensive end of the court. Blackburn managed only two points over the opening seven minutes of the contest, but Eureka failed to take control. Kameron Bell (Clinton, Ill./HS) was the only Red Devil to score in the same time span. Hit converted three layups giving EC a slim 6-2 lead.
The Beavers came back to tie the game at 8-8, and were down just 11-10 before Eureka completely caved the wall in on their attack. The Red Devils scored 21 straight points by holding Blackburn off the scoreboard for almost eight full minutes. Blackburn scored the final three points of the frame, but shot just 16 percent (5-for-32) and trailed 32-13 at halftime. The 13 points is the fewest Eureka has allowed in any half played since 1999.
The Red Devils out-rebounded Blackburn 29-17 in the opening stanza, but were not content with just keeping the ball as they ran past the Beavers to an 11-0 edge in fast break points.
Eureka kept the peddle to the metal as the second half began with a barrage of EC three-pointers. Four different Red Devils recorded treys in the first two minutes of the period, giving Eureka a 44-15 advantage. Extending back to the first half, EC was on a 33-5 tear at the time.
Tommy Baro later scored six straight points, including four at the charity stripe as Blackburn sliced the margin to 22 with 12:45 to play, but there would be no miracle comeback in the cards. Eureka went on to pad its cushion to 31 points (68-37) at the 6:43 mark and walked away with a 21-point decision despite connecting on just one field goal the rest of the way.
Four Red Devils reached double figures, including Michael Zasada (McHenry, Ill./HS), who had a game-high 16 points. He just missed a third consecutive double-double with nine boards. Bell was able to top double figures in multiple categories with 15 points and 11 caroms. He made 7-for-11 shot attempts in 21 minutes. Brady Wildenradt (Delavan, Ill./HS) hit three treys en route to 11 points, while Jordan Kindred (Chrisman, Ill./HS) rounded out the quartet with 10 points, six rebounds and four assists. A total of 12 Red Devils recorded a points in the game.
Rod Sykes led the Beavers with 12 points and 14 rebounds before being ejected with 22 seconds to play. Blackburn's second leading scorer, Tommy Baro, was held in relative check by EC, going 2-for-12 from the field. He did hit six foul shots to finish with 10 points, five rebounds and four steals.
Eureka has certainly caught fire at the right time of the season, but the question remains, will it be too late? It is a good thing the Red Devils have been helping themselves to wins recently because they have not been receiving any help from the rest of the league. Eureka has pieced together a pair of four-game winning streaks over the past 35 days to move to within one game of .500 overall and three games over even in the SLIAC. Still, EC somehow sits in sixth place out of nine teams with three games left, and only the top four advance to the league playoffs.
Wednesday's results set up a huge game in Eureka Saturday, February 14 at 3:00 pm as the Red Devils square off with Maryville University. The Saints, who squeaked out a 77-72 victory in St. Louis over EC on January 3, sit a half-game ahead of Eureka in the standings. The Red Devils could be as high as tied for second or as low as sixth after play this weekend.
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For More Information Contact:
Bryan Moore
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