The No. 16 ranked Emory University men's basketball team made history in front of its home fans Tuesday night, dishing out a program single-game record of 31 assists as the Eagles dismantled the Sewanee Tigers 109-72 in the home opener.
Returning to the WoodPEC for the first time in five games, Emory was firing on all cylinders as the team cracked the 100-point barrier for the first time this season. The Eagles, now 4-1 on the season, have scored 90 points or more in three straight games and are averaging 93.8 points through five games.
Junior Cale Martens continued his recent tear as he led all scorers with 24 points, his third straight game with 22 points or more. Freshman Ethan Fauss posted a season-best 19 points with junior Logan Shanahan adding 15 points. Off the bench, freshman AJ Harris paced the reserve unit with 12 points while sophomore Tyson Thomas notched nine points and topped the team with a career-high nine assists. Senior Max Fried led the bench group with 21 minutes and pulled down a team- and personal-best 12 rebounds.
Behind Thomas, four other Eagles recorded three or more assists and nine Eagles had at least one assist on the night as Emory rewrote the program record book. The 31 assists were the most in a single game in team history surpassing the 1989-90 squad that registered 30 assists twice, doing so on December 1, 1989 against Carnegie Mellon and on January 23, 1990 against Sewanee.
The Eagles set the tone from the jump, shooting 54.5% from the field and collecting 21 assists on 24 made field goals in the opening half. Martens and Fauss each had 15 points across the first 20 minutes with Shanahan joining them in double figures with 11. The 63 points in the half were the most by the Eagles in any half so far this season.
Sewanee started the game by scoring six of the first 10 points but a 5-0 run by Martens including his first three-ball of the night put the Eagles in front 9-6, a lead they would not surrender for the remainder of the game. The lead swelled to as many as 20 in the first half with a Shanahan bucket with 1:19 to go before taking a 63-44 score into the break.
The second half was more of the same with Emory continuing to extend its advantage, growing the margin to as many as 37 with a 105-68 scoreline with 3:54 when sophomore John Coppolino IV knocked down a three. Senior Matteo Whelton and junior Isaac Snyder rounded out the scoring on the night with converted free throws helping the margin reach 37 again at 109-72.
The Eagles once again were a force on the glass with a 54-33 total in rebounds while forcing 17 turnovers with 14 steals. Emory shot 45.9% on the night, including 13-for-36 from long range, and held Sewanee to 41.3% shooting and 5-for-27 from deep.
The Eagles are back on the road for their next three contests, starting with the 2023 UAA Challenge this weekend in Waltham, Mass. Emory is set to take on a pair of NESCAC schools, beginning with Colby College Friday night at 7:00 PM at Brandeis University.