EUREKA, Ill. – The Spalding University men's basketball team used a strong second half to pull away from Eureka Tuesday night, defeating the Red Devils, 69-52. Spalding moves to 14-5 this season and remained in first place of the SLIAC with an 11-1 mark. Eureka fell to 7-10 overall with a 5-6 conference mark.

Brandon Gabriel was the high point man, pouring in 18 points. James Turner added 12 points and Bud Moore posted nine points and 12 rebounds for Spalding. Defensively, the Eagles held Eureka to just 33 percent shooting.

Spalding came out cold, falling behind 7-2 just three minutes into the game. The deficit grew to seven points after a Eureka layup before Spalding reeled off eight straight points to take their first lead of the game at 14-13 with nine and a half minutes before halftime. After a Red Devil layup to tie the score at 18, Spalding used a 10-3 spurt to take a seven point lead, their largest of the game at that point. A three-pointer at the horn cut the Eagle lead to 30-26 at break.

Spalding came out a bit sluggish in the second half, as Eureka was able to tie the game twice and even take a one point lead at 38-37 with 12 minutes left to play. After a timeout, Spalding's defense took over and dominated the rest of the game, allowing only four field goals over the last 12 minutes. A 19-5 run, capped by a pair of free throws by Moore, gave Spalding a 13 point lead at 56-43, and Red Devils would get no closer than 11 points the rest of the way.

The Golden Eagles continue their road swing Thursday night at Iowa Wesleyan at 9:00 p.m. EST.