WILKES-BARRE, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Basketball opened the MAC Freedom season with an 87-76 win at King's College. The Eagles shot 56.9 percent from the floor and made 10-of-22 from behind the arc to outpace the host Monarchs. Darius Washington finished with 25 points to lead the Eagles.

Eastern (6-1, 1-0 MAC Freedom) took an 8-6 lead on a Victor Peña 3-pointer and never trailed the rest of the way. The lead reached double figures for the first time after a Marquise Peel three-point play and Draig Ruff scored in transition on consecutive possessions with a little more than seven minutes left in the half. The Monarchs answered with a quick five-point run but the Eagles bumped the lead to 31-19 with a seven-point answer.

Austin Duncan made a 3-pointer in between a pair of Washington free throws and a lay-up from Michaiah Fraction.  Nine different Eagles scored in the opening half. Peña led the Eagles at the break with nine points. The senior forward made four-of-six shot attempts on the way to a 37-26 lead at the break.

While the Eagles seemed to score at will to start the second half, the Eastern lead stayed right about ten as the teams traded baskets for the opening  five minutes of the half.

Washington then sparked a 24-7 run to break the game open. The senior guard hit four 3-pointers in the burst. When Michael Bowlers scored inside to put the Eagles up 69-44 with 8:42 to play, it looked like the game might be out of reach.

The Monarchs took advantage of a few stops and turnovers to put together a quick 10-0 run and force the Eagles to have to score down the stretch. Bowlers finished well. The junior forward was 6-of-9 from the floor and made all four of his free throws to finish with 16 points.

Austin Duncan scored eight points, grabbed nine rebounds, and dished out six assists and Clifton Adams was 3-for-3 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers.

Historically, McGrane Gym has been a tough place fro Eastern teams to play. This is only the second win at King's in the last nine years. The only other win in that stretch came in January of 2017.

Washington had five 3-pointers for the fourth time this season. The Wilkes-Barre native talked after the game about how much he enjoyed coming home to play. He also pointed to the play of Bowlers and Peña inside.

"It all starts with them," he said. "If teams go to double-team we get shots. If they don't help on those guys, well, that's going to be a long night for them as well."

Adams struggled with foul trouble in the game, but made some big plays with active hands on defense. The junior guard also showed confidence shooting the open 3-pointer.

"Cliff is playing really well," Head Coach Eric McNelley said after the game. "He helps set our defensive pressure and gets us into what we need to run. It's a confidence thing with him. There is not a better athlete in the league than him, and he is doing his job on the floor."

"We got a little comfortable," McNelley said of the King's run. "We made a couple turnovers and they hit some shots. In the timeout, we talked about playing every possession at both ends. King's plays hard and they have guys who can score. This league is like that. You have to play every possession every night."

The Eagles play their final home game of the semester on Saturday against Delaware Valley. The Aggies opened the MAC Freedom schedule with a home win over Manhattanville tonight. Eastern FTK is sponsoring a Christmas sweater event. Eastern fans are encouraged to show their support for the Eagles, Eastern FTK, and kids with Cancer by wearing a favorite Christmas sweater to Saturday's doubleheader. There will be gifts, prizes, and contests for those participating in the event.