DURHAM, North Carolina — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team dropped their conference matchup against the North Carolina Central University Eagles on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 9) by the score of 78-53.
Maryland Eastern Shore struggled against the interior players from NC Central for much of the game. The Hawks managed to only get 18 rebounds as a team, while the Eagles grabbed 33 including 11 on the offensive glass.
"They really were effective going inside on us tonight," head coach Clifford Reed said. "It was just one of the kind of nights that are tough because they were also making shots outside."
In the first 10 minutes, Eastern Shore was right with the Eagles. Junior AJ Cheeseman (Snellville, GA) made a layup with 10:34 left before halftime that brought the Hawks within two at 23-21. However, North Carolina Central would outscore Maryland Eastern Shore 21-9 over the final 10 minutes to take a 44-30 lead into the locker room.
The second half saw NCCU continue to go inside to score as they only attempted six 3-pointers after halftime. The Shore would not get closer than 11 in the second half as the Eagles finished the game shooting 57.1 percent from the field.
Eastern Shore had three players in double figures led by Ryan Andino (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) who finished with 13 points. Bryan Urrutia (Chihuahua, Mexico) and Gabriel Gyamfi (Brampton, ON, Canada) each had 10. Urrutia led the Hawks with seven assists, while Gyamfi led the team in rebounds with five.
NC Central was paced by Raasean Davis. Davis finished with a double-double as he had 21 points and 11 rebounds. Three other players – Zacarry Douglas (15), Larry McKnight Jr. (13) and Jibri Blount (12) – had double figures in scoring as well.
The Hawks will be back in action on Monday evening (Feb. 11) in Greensboro, NC against North Carolina A&T. That will be the second time this season the Hawks and Aggies will play.
"A&T is not as good inside as Central so it is more important for them to make shots," Reed said. "If we can neutralize their guards and rebound the ball, we will have a chance to steal one on the road."
For more information on Eastern Shore Athletics visit http://www.easternshorehawks.com/.
