ST. DAVIDS, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Basketball (6-0) held the visiting Haverford College Fords to 26 percent shooting and pulled away to a 62-40 win to remain unbeaten on the year. Kaeshawn Ward scored ten points and registered a season-high eight assists to lead the Eagles on offense.

After a slow start for both teams, the Eagles put together a 10-to-0 run over a three-minute stretch to build a 16-2 lead at the midpoint of the first half. Eastern stretched the lead to 33-13 at the half. Jaron Fairweather had 11 points on 3-of-3 from behind the arc in the opening 20 minutes. He finished the game with a team-best 13 points,  six rebounds, and four steals.

The Fords (1-3), who typically thrive behind the arc, were 1-for-14 from distance in the first half and 3-for-26 for the game. The focus of the Eastern preparation, according to Head Coach Dan Pruessner, was to limit and contest attempts from deep. While the Foods missed a couple open looks, many of their attempts came with an Eastern player challenging.

In the first half, Eastern went 4-for-12 from behind the arc and scored 14 points off turnovers. Jairus Carroll scored six points off the bench.

"We had a struggle yesterday in practice,"Pruessner said. "We couldn't catch, shoot, pass, or anything. It was our worst practice of the year. Ordinarily, we would have jumped on them, but today is our fifth game in eight days. It was just that kind of a day. We got in for shoot-around this morning and the guys were back locked in. Kaeshawn, Jaron, and Sam set the tone, and the rest of the team came right with them."

"Kaeshawn was really impressive today," Pruessner added. "He made good decisions about when to get to the rim and when to find teammates. When your point guard has an 8-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, you are going to be able to get baskets at key moments."

The Eagles led 46-25 with eight and a half minutes to play, but the Fords put together an 11-to-2 run with Ward and Fairweather off the court to close the gap to 12 points. The backcourt duo returned and Ward took over. He scored an inside basket and then delivered assists on the next three possessions to restore a 21-point edge. He had kick-out passes to Sam Gallardo and Fairweather and delivered a perfect bounce pass for a thunderous two-handed jam from Zubair Lee.

The starters gave way, and the Eastern lead stretched to 24 on a Josiah Scarlett 3-pointer. The Eastern bench scored 25 points in the win. Olise Onyeka, Nick Mate, and Carroll each had six, and Scarlett had five. The Eastern bench took and made nine free throws in the game. No Eastern starter attempted a foul shot. Lee finished with six rebounds and five blocked shots. 

Josh Love led the Fords with 18 points.

"Our bench has been great this year," Pruessner continued. "Kevin Reeves and Jairus are both shooting over 50 percent from the floor, and practice is always competitive. They make us better each day."

Since joining the NCAA in 1992, Eastern Men's Basketball has never won its first six games in a season. The Eagles have the beginning of next week to recover before heading to Christopher Newport University for a tournament next Saturday and Sunday. They will take on the North Carolina Wesleyan University Battling Bishops in the opening game and the winner of that game will get the winner of the game between the host Captains and the Sarah Lawrence University Gryphons. CNU (4-0) lost by two in last year's NCAA National Semifinal.