The men's basketball team defeated Eastern Mennonite, 84-66 in ODAC action on Saturday afternoon. The Maroons improved to 11-2 overall, 5-1 in ODAC play. The Royals dropped to 4-8 overall, 1-5 in the conference. It was the fifth win in the last six meetings against EMU.

Curtis Peery led all scorers with 20 points and eight rebounds along with a career-high four assists. It was the third 20-point game of his career.

The 11-2 record is the best start for Roanoke since the 1999-00 season (12-2) and the seven-game win streak is the most since 2000-01 (nine in a row).

The Maroons out rebounded the Royals, 39-36 while outscoring them 44-30 in the paint and 12-7 in second chance points. They had over 20 assists for the fourth time this season and had over 10 steals for the fourth time in five games. It was the third time this season that the Maroons had shot over 50-percent from the floor (33-62 for 53.2%).

The Royals jumped out to a 10-4 lead early in the first half just four minutes into the game. Freshman Melvin Felix made the score, 17-16 off a three-pointer with 10 minutes remaining in the half.

The Maroons built an 11-point lead after a 15-5 run over the next six minutes to make it 32-21 towards the end of the half. Felix capped the run with a lay-up off an assist by Keith Carter on a fast break.

The Maroons stormed out on a 14-2 run to extend their lead to 22, 48-26 with 16 minutes remaining. Senior Josh LaPorte scored six points during the run.

The Royals cut the Maroon lead to 13 on a Devon McRae dunk with 13 minutes to go, but could get no closer. The Maroons slowly increased their lead and secured their fifth ODAC victory.

Carter finished with 13 points and tied a career-high with seven assists, also tying a career-high three trey balls. He shot 5-of-7 from the floor. The Roanoke native needs two more assists to move into ninth all-time in that category at RC. Freshman Matt Crizer tied a season-high four points and pulled down a season-best three rebounds in five minutes of play. He also had his first blocked shot and three-pointer of his career.

LaPorte finished with 10 points and three rebounds, tying him for ninth all-time in rebounding at Roanoke. AJ Dowell scored nine points and had three rebounds and two steals. It was the first time since Nov. 26 vs. Ferrum that he has been held to under 10 points.

The men will travel to Guilford on Wednesday, Jan. 23 to play in ODAC action. They defeated the Quakers, 68-56 last Wednesday at home. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.