Senior Julien Williams scored a team-high 18 points to lead five double-figure scorers as the Emory men’s basketball team used a strong second-half performance in defeating Brandeis Friday evening.  The Eagles raised their overall record to 15-4 overall, 6-2 in the University Athletic Association following an 85-70 decision over the Judges who slipped to 13-5 in overall action, 3-5 in the league.

Williams connected on seven-of-12 from the field, including two-of-three from three-point range in registering his fifth straight double-figure scoring performance.  Junior Austin Claunch totaled 16 points, 14 coming in the second half, along with eight assists.  Sophomores Alex Greven and Michael Friedberg chipped in 14 and 13 points, respectively, with Friedberg pulling down a team-high seven rebounds. Freshman Jake Davis rounded out the team’s double-digit scorers with 10 points.

After hitting just 39.3 percent (11-of-28) from the floor in the first half, the Eagles got untracked over the final 20 minutes of action, knocking down 63.1 percent of their field goal opportunities, including seven-of-eight three point attempts.  Emory concluded the game successful on 50.8 percent (30-of-59) from the floor compared to the visitor’s mark of 48.1 percent (26-of-54).  The Eagles finished the night with a decided edge in three-point shooting, compiling a 52.9 percent effort (9-of-17) while Brandeis shot just 14.3 percent (2-of-14) from distance.

In a closely played first half that saw seven lead changes and five ties, Friedberg picked up 11 points and Williams added eight in keying the Eagles to a 33-31 halftime edge.  Emory trailed by a 31-30 margin before a three-point play by Davis in the waning moments of the stanza actually put the Eagles up for good.

Nursing a 40-38 lead with 17:13 left in the game, Emory went on an important 15-6 run, hitting six-of-seven field goal attempts, including three consecutive three pointers, in taking a 55-44 lead with 13:49 on the clock.  Both Claunch and junior Alex Gulotta picked up five points in that stretch, with each hitting a triple, while Williams added one from beyond the arc in the spurt.  The Eagles put the game out of when they used a 13-4 outburst to stretch a 65-54 cushion into a 78-58 cushion with 4:32 left in the game.   The three-point shot keyed that onslaught with junior Justin Resnick, Claunch and Greven all knocking down shots from distance in that run. 

Emory, now 9-1 at home this year, returns to the Woodruff PE Center on Sunday to host New York University at noon.