NICEVILLE, Fla. – Dante Holmes led four North Carolina Central players in double figures with 14 points and the Eagles beat Eastern Illinois 65-40 on Friday in the third round of the Emerald Coast Classic.
Jordan Parks added 13 points and nine rebounds, Karamo Jawara 12 points and Anthony McDonald 11 for the Eagles (2-3), who led the entire way.
Reggie Smith led the Panthers (1-5) with 15 points. Letrell Viser added 10.
The Eagles led 40-20 at halftime, hitting 50 percent of their shots while holding the Panthers to 26.1 percent. NCCU finished at 48.9 percent, hitting 23 of 47 shots, including half of their 16 3-point attempts. The Panthers finished 31.8 percent from the floor. The Eagles also held a 33-23 rebounding edge.
The Eagles led by as many 26 points in the second half.
Saturday, NCCU plays the winner of Friday's Southern-Northern Arizona game while EIU plays the loser.
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