Royals trounce Legends

In an exhibition contest Saturday night in Yoder arena, Eastern Mennonite men's basketball team battled--and defeated--the Shenandoah Valley Legends 93-84.

Overall the Royals shot 52.3 percent in the contest, but, during the second half, had 21-of-35 for 60 percent. Both teams struggled from the three-point arch in the first half, combining to make only two of 18 shots. In the second half, however, the Legends stepped up and put the pressure on the Royals, going 6-for-14 beyond the arch.

For EMU, five players hit the hoop enough times to score in the double figures and lead the team to their pre-season victory. Sophomore Jason Lentz led the scoring with 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor, and also had seven rebounds for the evening. Senior E.J. Arrington also had seven rebounds, and he followed Lentz closely in the scoring with 16 points for the Royals. Freshman Brad Parkes had 15 points, including 8-of-11 from the three throw line; sophomore Chris Ropp netted 11 points; and freshman Korey Whiting finished up the double-digit scoring trend for the Royals by adding 10 points to the scoreboard. Jason Sager, a sophomore, also contributed nine points and seven rebounds.

For the Legends, Jeremy Harper led with 13 points, getting hot in the second half behind the three-point line on 3-of-6 shooting. Also putting up a tough fight, Richard Little and Richard Bruce both had 11 points for Shenandoah.

Exhibition games do not figure in the season statistics; the Royals will kick off their official season on Friday, Nov. 19, in the EMU Tip-Off Classic. Featuring two games, at 6 p.m. Bridgewater will take on Christendom followed by an 8 p.m. contest between EMU and Lancaster Bible College.