DiLeo paces men's basketball with eight 3-pointers in 103-68 win over Eureka
Senior forward Cecil Williams blocks during the game against Eureka on Nov. 18 at McGuirk Arena.
Sophomore forward David DiLeo had a career high eight 3-pointers to lead Central Michigan men's basketball to a 103-68 victory over NCAA Division III Eureka Sturday at McGuirk Arena.
In his third career start, DiLeo paced the team with 28 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in 28 minutes.
The Chippewas (2-1) excelled at pushing the ball towards the Red Devils defense and finding DiLeo for open 3-pointers, in which he made 8-of-17.
DiLeo said he's settling into his new role.
“There was a little bit of an adjustment period, but today was a great step forward in getting comfortable with my role on the team.” DiLeo said.
The Chippewas as a team shot well from beyond the arc, going 20-of-52. Senior guard Josh Kozinski shot 4-of-9 from deep and junior guard Gavin Peppers chipped in three 3-pointers as well. Peppers was tied for second in scoring with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Senior forward Cecil Williams posted his second double-double of the season, putting up 17 points and 13 rebounds. His play was more impactful on the defensive end where he had four blocks, one steal and routinely contested Red Devil shots.
CMU's full court press was impactfull all game and forced eight turnovers. Head coach Keno Davis said he was pleased with his team’s effort on the defensive end.
“Sometimes when you face a team that plays small, there’s mismatches on forwards and centers who have to chase around guards for 40 minutes and it’s easy to take plays off," he said. “Today we played hard man-to-man defense for 40 minutes which will help us become the defensive team we want to be.”
Kozinski said he’s pleased with where the team is three games into the year.
“I think we’re ahead of the game and we’re deep off the bench," he said. "We can shoot the ball but we’re also versatile in how we score with guys like Cecil, McKay and Peppers being able to score in the paint.”
Davis backed up Kozinski by reiterating that the team has several players who can lead the team in any game.
“You saw Roundtree have a big game versus Michigan and DiLeo today, as long as we keep playing hard and developing the depth we have we’re only going to get better as the year goes on.” Davis said.
The Chippewas' next challenge will be the Great Alaska Shootout starting on Wednesday, Nov. 22nd against Sam Houston State at 6:30 p.m. at the Alaska Airlines Center. The Great Alaska Shootout celebrates its 40th and last year having the tournament.
Davis said he’s happy for the players to be able to experience Alaska and the tournament atmosphere.
