BEAVER FALLS, Pa. - Eastern Men's Basketball rolled to 96-73 win over Geneva College in the first round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Tipoff Tournament at Geneva. The Eagles shot 54 percent from the floor and recorded 27 assists as 12 players scored in the lopsided win.

Shaquan Turk scored 18 points. Abraham Kurnick added 15, and Malcolm Garrison made 4-of-5 3-pointers to finish with 12 points.

Eastern fell behind 11-8 early. The Eagles extended pressure against the host Golden Tornados and raced out to a  27-16 lead. Garrison sparked the Eagle run. Eastern's lone senior recorded both a steal and an assist on back-to-back possessions at the beginning of the 19-5 spurt.

The Eagles shot 55.56% from the field in the first half to help them take a 50-38 lead at the break. 

"We did a great job making the extra pass and moving the ball around," Head Coach Eric McNelley said. "Twenty-seven assists is an amazing accomplishment and shows our growth as a young team.  I also was pleased with how we were able to establish a post presence early in the game. Which I think set the tone for the night." The assist total is the most by an Eastern team in at least nine years. The next highest total came in a 106-66 win over the Centenary Cyclones in January of 2008. The Eagles had 26 helpers on that day.

Eastern converted 16 Golden Tornado turnovers into 30 points. Kurnick and Turk helped the Eagles to dominate in the paint as well. Kurnick made 5-of-10 field goal attempts and grabbed nine rebounds.  Led by Garrison's 12 and eight points from Jonathan Tolber, Eastern's bench scored 42 points. 

"Obviously, the Cabrini was huge for our young team," McNelley added. "We built confidence in what we are trying to do on the offensive end, and it carried over to today's game."

The Eagles made 10-of-24 (41.6%) from behind the arc. Austin James and Tarek Hamzeh each made a pair from distance. McNelley's squad has seen its 3-point percentage increase in each of the last two games. The first-year head coach attributes that to better ball movement and good shooters finding shots in rhythm.

Geneva's Chaese Vaudrin scored a game-high 19 points. Jimmy Leichliter added 16. Even while shooting over 50 percent from the floor, the Eagles held a 45-30 edge on the glass.

The Eagles will play against Grove City College tomorrow afternoon at 1 pm. The Wolverines (2-1) beat Kenyon College in a close game this evening.