Eastern Illinois pulls away from Ball St 61-54

Dec 3, 2014, 10:38 pm

CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Chris Olivier scored 16 points and Trae Anderson added 13 to lead Eastern Illinois over Ball State 61-54 in a second-half comeback on Wednesday night.

Eastern Illinois was held to just 18 first-half points, but went on a 14-2 run after the break to lead 32-26. The Cardinals pulled in front once more with 8:31 to go, making it 38-34.

Dylan Chapman answered with a 3-pointer and the Panthers scored seven-straight to grab the lead for good. Eastern Illinois went 8 of 10 on free-throw shooting in the final five minutes despite ending the night at 57.1 percent.

Anderson finished with a double-double, grabbing 11 rebounds. Cornell Johnston had seven assists for the Panthers (3-5).

Zavier Turner led Ball State with 20 points, Jeremie Tyler added 10, and Franko House grabbed 10 rebounds. The Cardinals (2-3) shot just 30.4 percent (17 of 56) from the floor.