Dec. 4, 2007
WASHINGTON - The American University men's basketball team notched its 1,000th win in the program's 82-year history with a 66-54 comeback win over Howard University Tuesday in Bender Arena.
The Eagles trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half, when HU's Eugene Myatt hit a jumper to make the score 18-7 at the 11:05 mark. However, just 17 seconds later junior guard Garrison Carr hit one of his four three-pointers on the night to start the comeback. AU tied the game up at 18 a piece less than five minutes later on an acrobatic layup in the lane by Derrick Mercer, and the Eagles eventually went into the locker room up 34-30. It was the eighth time in nine games the Eagles had the lead at halftime.
American jumped all over the Bison to start the second half, scoring the first 10 points of the period to give the Eagles an 14-point advantage at 44-30. Frank Borden and Carr each hit treys during the run, while the Eagles' defense held Howard scoreless for nearly seven minutes to open the half. Howard got the deficit back to single digits on an Adam Walker jumper with 11:09 left, but the Bison would get no closer the rest of the way.
Carr led the Eagles with 17 points, hitting six-of-nine shots and four-of-six three-pointers. He also added a career-high eight rebounds. Meanwhile, Brian Gilmore and Jordan Nichols had 11 points a piece, each only missing one shot, and Bryce Simon tallied 10 points and seven rebounds. American is now 4-0 this season when four or more players score in double-digits. This is the second time in just over a week the Eagles have accomplished that feat, as they had four players tally 10 or more points in the win over Mount St. Mary's.
Howard, which falls to 3-6 overall, was led by Myatt's game-high 22 points.
American moves to 5-4 overall. The Eagles now have a 1,000-947 (.513) record in the program's 82-year history.
The Eagles return to action on Friday, Dec. 7, when they host Jacksonville University in a game televised live in the Washington/Baltimore region by the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. Check local listings for the channel in your area. For tickets, call (202) 885-TIXX or click here.
