(writen by Staci Green, NCCU Student Assistant)

DURHAM, N.C. - The North Carolina Central University men's basketball team stretched its home-game winning streak to 27, as the Eagles triumphed over the IUPUI Jaguars, 70-49, on Monday, Dec. 29 in McDougald-McLendon Gymnasium.

NCCU redshirt junior Dante Holmes (Baltimore, Maryland) controlled the scoring with a game-high 15 points and shot 75 percent from the free-throw line.

Senior Nimrod Hilliard (Madison, Wisconsin) led the Eagles' defense with seven rebounds. He also contributed 13 points with five assists for the NCCU offense.

NCCU opened the contest with a 26-8 run against IUPUI (Indiana University-Perdue University Indianapolis), leaving 8:09 in first-half play. The momentum was in full swing for the Eagles, but the Jaguars slowly, but surely began to narrow the lead.

With less than five minutes remaining in the first half, IUPUI took on a 10-2 run, led by Jaguars guard D.J. McCall, who contributed five free-throw points during the comeback attempt.

By the close of the first half, IUPUI had trimmed the lead to 32-22.

The Eagles regained composure after halftime and began capitalizing on IUPUI errors, accumulating 12 points from 11 Jaguar turnovers.

With a layup from Holmes, NCCU was leaving IUPUI in the dust, leading 51-30. With 11:41 remaining on the clock, the Eagles were only warming up.

Senior Anthony McDonald (Aberdeen, Mississippi) contributed 11 of NCCU's 38 second-half points, as the Eagles maintained a 20-point cushion much of the final 15 minutes, leading by as many as 23 points.

Consecutive shots from McDonald, including his third three-pointer of the night, brought the Eagles to obtain the final score of 70-49.

Monday's victory makes for head coach LeVelle Moton's 99th win. NCCU will host South Carolina State Saturday, Jan. 10, as Moton will try to become the fifth head coach in NCCU men's basketball history to reach the century mark.