By Taylor Chitwood, Sports Info. Student Assistant

FERRUM, Virginia -- Rashad Reed set a new career-high in points scored with 31 as he led the Ferrum College men's basketball team to a 75-60 win over Old Dominion Athletic Conference foe Eastern Mennonite University Saturday evening inside Swartz Gymnasium.

RECORDS
Ferrum (8-8, 3-4 ODAC)
Eastern Mennonite (3-13, 1-6 ODAC)

THE BASICS
Both teams traded blows early on in the first half, with neither team able to find a comfortable lead. Eastern Mennonite used a 9-0 run, spanning over four minutes midway through the first half, to claim its biggest lead of the game. The Panthers would answer right back with a 12-2 run themselves to re-claim the lead in the final minutes of the half. The Royals took a 35-34 advantage into the break.

Reed led all scorers in the first half with 15 points to go along with four boards. James Smith Jr. made his return to the Panther lineup with a big performance off the bench, netting 11 first half points. Marcus Plair was able to add three points to go along with four rebounds and two assists. For the Royals, Tim Jones and DJ Hill led the way in the scoring department, each adding seven points. Tie Evans and Josh Whelan were not far behind, each recording six points apiece.

The second half went the way of the Panthers, as Reed knocked down a quick trey to give the Panthers the lead back and they would not give it back. Ferrum would start the second half on a 13-5 run to give them enough space the rest of the way. The Panthers outscored Eastern Mennonite 41-25 in the second half, allowing them to get back to the .500 mark on the season.

Reed followed up his first half performance with an even better 16-point output in the closing stanza to again lead all scorers. Kajuan Madden-McAfee had a strong second half as well for the Panthers, recording eight points and six rebounds. Carrington Young and Kalip Jones both notched four points and three assists. For EMU, Hill recorded 12 points to go along with six rebounds. Jones had a good half as well, scoring seven points while also adding two boards.

KEY STATS
Ferrum: Reed 31 pts, 5 reb; Smith Jr. 16 pts; Madden-McAfee 8 pts, 8 reb; Plair 7 pts, 11 reb
Eastern Mennonite: Hill 19 pts, 9 reb; Jones 14 pts, 5 reb; Evans 8 pts, 3 reb, 3 steals

BEHIND THE WHISTLE
"Great effort from our guys today, especially in the second half. We were somewhat lackadaisical in the first half defensively, but locked in during the second. Proud of the unselfishness we played with offensively. We moved the ball around and took great shots." --Head Coach Tyler Sanborn

UP NEXT
Sanborn's team will be back in action Wednesday, Jan 22, on the road to take on the Hornets of the University of Lynchburg. The two teams have met once before this season, with the Panthers winning 78-73 inside Swartz Gymnasium. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside Turner Gymnasium.