Hounds keep rolling, knock off No. 7 DBU

DALLAS – Eastern New Mexico University’s men – and Jahcoree Ealy in particular – just keep on rolling.

The senior guard/forward poured in 42 points – the most by an ENMU player in this century – and the Greyhounds controlled the game most of the way en route to a 104-94 victory over previously unbeaten and seventh-ranked Dallas Baptist on Saturday.

Ealy, who was 14-of-19 from the floor, now has 104 points in his last three outings and on Monday earned his second consecutive LSC player of the week honor on offense. The school single-game record of 50 points was set by Bob Kirkley during the 1977-78 season against New Mexico Highlands.

In women’s play on Saturday at Denton, Texas, 10th-ranked Texas Woman’s handed ENMU an 81-71 setback.

ENMU’s men improved to 6-2 (4-0 LSC), reaching the 100-point barrier for the fourth time this season. Ealy has three of the league’s top four scoring games in 2023-24 and leads the LSC at 24.9 ppg.

“I’m incredibly proud of our group,” Hounds coach Brent Owen said. “They handled themselves well and played together against a DBU team (which) applied the most pressure I’ve ever coached against on the defensive end.”

Trailing 17-12, the Hounds went on an 8-0 run that included a pair of buckets from Ealy, and they maintained the advantage the rest of the way.

ENMU shot 66 percent (23-of-35) in building a 51-36 halftime margin. The Hounds led 62-40 with under 17 minutes left and only briefly late in the tilt did the Patriots (7-1, 3-1) cut it to single figures (103-94).

Junior forward Mario Whitley added 14 points while senior guards Greg Johnson and Lyron Bennett and sophomore guard Junior Hodnett each chipped in 11. ENMU made 14-of-18 free throws in the final 3 ½ minutes, including 8-of-8 for Ealy.

Johnson and Bennett each had six of the Hounds’ 22 assists, while Ealy compiled four assists and four of the team’s 11 steals. ENMU scored 64 paint points and finished at 61 percent (39-of-64) from the floor, led by Ealy and Bennett (7-of-8).

“Our goal for this team is to have a chance to compete for a championship in the NCAA tournament,” Owen said. “Wins like this go a long way come March.”

Senior guards Ricky Lujan and Cameron Kahn had 25 and 22 points, respectively, while junior guard Isaac Bullard chipped in 18 off the bench for the Patriots, who were held to 7-of-29 from 3-point distance.

Prior to the holiday break, the Hounds have non-league games remaining against Northern New Mexico at 6 p.m. on Thursday at The Rock in Clovis and against Navajo Tech at 11 a.m. on Tuesday at Greyhound Arena. They return to LSC play with games at Texas-Permian Basin on Jan. 4 and Angelo State on Jan. 6.

Women – TWU improved to 10-1 (4-0 LSC), taking the lead for good midway through the second stanza and using a 7-0 run early in the third for a 10-point lead. ENMU (4-6, 0-4) kept the game within six points late before the Pioneers converted four free throws in the final 19 seconds to seal the deal.

Sophomore guard Averee Kleinhans shot 8-for-10 from the field and finished with a personal-best 21 points to go with five assists in 24 minutes off the bench for TWU. Freshman guard Jada Celsur added 19 points and sophomore guard Leila Patel tossed in 10.

Senior guard Vanessa Oduah led the Hounds with four 3s and a season-high 19 points off the bench. Senior guard Jamila Nansikombi-Gunter scored 16, while senior guard/forward Deja Adrian had 14.

Both team shot better than 50 percent from the floor – ENMU was 25-of-46 and TWU went 24-for-47 – but the Pioneers converted 25-of-30 free throws and forced 23 turnovers, leading to 28 points.

“We scored the ball efficiently tonight, but we struggled to string together stops and didn’t execute our defensive principles or system,” ENMU women’s coach Blake Huber said. “The ball got into the paint too much, and we didn’t guard the bounce or gap well enough to win.”

ENMU now takes a 25-day hiatus from game competition before returning to LSC play on Jan. 4 at UTPB.