Dama guides Eastern Illinois past Eastern Kentucky 54-53

Jan 6, 2018, 11:17 pm

RICHMOND, Ky. -- Muusa Dama notched his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 13 rebounds and Eastern Illinois held off Eastern Kentucky 54-53 on Saturday.

Montell Goodwin added 15 points and six boards for the Panthers (6-9, 2-2 Ohio Valley Conference) in a cold-shooting affair. Eastern Illinois shot just 36.5 percent from the floor, made just 4 of 14 from 3-point range and missed six of its 18 free throws.

Nick Mayo and DeAndre Dishman scored 12 each to lead Eastern Kentucky (6-11, 0-4), which made 33 percent from the field, 23 percent from beyond the arc and 67 percent at the free-throw line.

Goodwin's 3-pointer in the closing seconds gave the Panthers a 29-19 lead at intermission. Dama's 3-point play pushed the lead to 41-26 with 13:42 remaining to play.

The Colonels chipped away and used a Dishman layup and a Dedric Boyd jumper to pull within 54-53 with 34 seconds left. The Panthers missed the front end of 1-and-1 twice, but Boyd turned it over with a chance to take the lead and Mayo missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.