Emory Men's Basketball Tops Case Western -- Moves Into First-Place Tie In the UAA

The Emory men’s basketball team received double-figure scoring from five players as the Eagles notched their third straight win Friday evening with a victory over Case Western Reserve University.  Emory upped its overall record to 12-3, 3-1 in the University Athletic Association, good for a first-place tie, following a 97-73 victory over the Spartans who fell to 7-8 overall, 3-1 in the conference.

Sophomore Alex Greven led the scoring parade with 18 points, sinking eight-of-14 from the floor, including two-of-three from three-point range. Junior Austin Claunch played a masterful all-around game, totaling 17 points on five-of-11 field goal shooting that included three three-point field goals.  Claunch also doled out 11 assists, tying the second-highest individual total in school history (he holds the top mark of 12) and finished with three steals.  Freshman Jake Davis came off the bench to contribute 16 points and five rebounds and two steals in 17 minutes of action while senior Julien Willams registered a season-high 14 points, knocking down six-of-nine from the floor, while grabbing six boards.  Sophomore Michael Friedberg rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points while adding a game-high rebounds and four steals. 

Emory ended the contest shooting, 53.8 percent from the floor (35-of-65), including a keen 50 percent (11-of-22) from three-point range.  The Eagles’ 11 tripled marked the seventh time this year that they registered double figures in that department.  Though it was outrebounded by a 37-28 margin, Emory forced 21 Case turnovers that it parlayed in 36 points. The Eagles connected on 55.2 percent from the floor during the final 20 minutes of play and held the visitors to 37.5 percent, posting a 46-31 scoring advantage that built upon a nine-point lead from halftime.

Case got off to a quick start in the game, laying claim to a 31-22 lead with 9:09 left in the first half. However, the Eagles used a 29-11 blitz over the remainder of the stanza to take a 51-42 advantage at intermission with the point total the second-highest first-half effort of the year.  Seven different players scored in the onslaught with Claunch knocking down a pair of treys and Greven chipping in six points.

Holding an 11-point lead with 15:31 left in game, Emory broke things wide open with a 14-2 sprint over a 4:26 span that upped its margin to 76-53 with 11:05 remaining.  The Eagles would eventually lead by as many as 28 points. 

Emory, 7-1 at home this season, returns to the Woodruff PE Center on Sunday for a noon contest against Carnegie Mellon.