The Rundown:  The Concordia Eagles won their opening game of the Ayres Thanksgiving Classic in Riverside, CA, 88-72, over New Mexico Highlands.

By the Numbers:  Case Bruton recorded his second-straight offensive output with a career-high 28 points on eight-of-14 shooting.  Stephen Grosey added 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.  JT Roach scored 14 points off the bench and Martin Thomas had seven assists. 

The Difference:  The Eagles hit 16 threes, compared to eight for NMH.  The Eagles had 20 assists and combined with their threes, fueled the win.

Critical Plays:  The Eagles jumped ahead 10-4 early led by four points from Grosey.  Two free throws from Roach put CUI ahead 21-8 with 11 minutes left.  Three-pointers from Roach and Mike Mellinger increased that lead to 46-28 with three minutes left in the half.  Early in the second half that lead increased to 20, and NMH only got the lead down to 10 with four minutes left. 

"This was an incredible team effort and I cannot recall us sharing the ball that well," CUI head coach Ken Ammann said.  "Our guys all made the extra pass and set each other up, and that was the main reason we shot so well in the first half.  They were a talented team and wouldn't go away, and they forced us to continue to outwork them to close them out."

What it Means:  The Eagles are now 4-1 on the season and dropped New Mexico Highlands to 1-4.

Up Next:  The Eagles wrap up the classic tomorrow against Concordia (OR) at 5 pm.  CUI already defeated CU-Portland 72-62 earlier this year.  Check the live links in the inset.