WASHINGTON – After holding a two-point lead at halftime, American University men's basketball pulled away with a strong second-half performance to top Army on Saturday, 83-67.
 
QUICK NOTABLES

• Five Eagles scored in double-figures for the first time since Feb. 12, 2020 against Loyola Maryland.
• Colin Smalls led AU with 17 points as he went 8-of-9 from the field.
• Elijah Stephens matched his career-high with four steals. It's the second time in three games that he's had four swipes.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first half was a back-and-forth affair with six ties and 11 lead changes.
• AU raced out to an early 7-2 lead, which was its largest of the half.
• The Eagles made nine of their first 12 field goal attempts but Army matched the offensive production in the early going.
• Army took a 31-28 lead with 3:52 left but Stephens responded on the ensuing possession with a 3-pointer to tie the game up.
• AU held a 35-33 lead at halftime.
• A layup from Jalen Rucker put Army on top 46-45 with 15:58 to go. It was Army's final lead of the game.
• A 24-6 run over the next 8:19 gave American the lead and plenty of breathing room after a triple from Lorenzo Donadio put AU up 69-52 with 7:39 left.
• American took its largest lead of the season (21 points) after a slam dunk from Stacy Beckton Jr. gave AU a 78-57 lead with 3:30 left.
• American finished the game with an 83-67 victory, its largest win margin of the season.

BY THE NUMBERS

• American outrebounded the league leader in the category, 33-31.
• The Eagles shot 58.3 percent for the game, their second-best shooting performance of the season.
• AU held Army to 25.0 percent from beyond the arc, while hitting 37.5 percent of its own 3-pointers. In the second half, AU was efficient with its shot selection, making 3-of-5 attempts from long-range.

UP NEXT

• The Eagles have a quick turnaround as they'll travel to face Colgate on Monday, Feb. 21 at 6:30 PM on CBS Sports Network.
• American returns to Bender Arena for Senior Day and Hall of Fame Day on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 2 PM against Loyola Maryland.
• Plan to arrive early by 1:50 PM as AU Men's Basketball honors its six-person senior class pregame.
• Tickets to this game and all remaining AU Men's Basketball home games are on sale now and can be purchased by clicking here.

KEEP UP WITH US

• For the latest on American University Men's Basketball, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter (@AU_MBasketball), Facebook (/AU.MBasketball) and Instagram (@au_mbasketball).