BROOKLYN, N.Y. - Anthony McDonald scored a game-high 21 points and Jordan Parks recorded his second straight double-double to lead North Carolina Central University to a convincing 61-39 victory in Sunday's nightcap of the "Big Apple Classic" inside the Barclays Center, home of the NBA's Brooklyn Nets.
 
The win is the fifth in-a-row for the Eagles, who improve to 6-3 overall and remain unbeaten in MEAC play at 2-0.
 
McDonald drained 7 of 15 three-point field goal attempts to help NCCU shoot 40.0 percent (10-for-25) from behind the arc as a team.
 
Parks, playing close to his hometown Queens, New York, scored 13 points on 6 of 8 shooting from the floor, while collecting 13 rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
 
NCCU point guard Nimrod Hilliard tallied nine points and distributed eight assists, while Dante Holmes contributed nine points, six boards, three assists and two steals, and Karamo Jawara chipped in seven points and six caroms for the Eagles.
 
Howard (5-5, 1-1 MEAC) was topped by James Daniel with 14 points as the only Bison to score in double figures. The Eagles held Howard to just 29.5 percent shooting from the field, making 13 of 44 shot attempts.
 
It took a while for both teams to settle into the NBA environment at Barclays Center, as they combined for five missed shots and four turnovers in a scoreless opening three minutes. NCCU scored first on a pair of free throws by Hilliard at 16:58.
 
Howard took a 9-6 advantage on a Daniel triple at 12:06, but the Eagles scored 10 unanswered points to start a 15-2 run, which included three trifectas by McDonald, to put NCCU ahead 21-11 with 6:56 before intermission.
 
The first half ended the way it started, with two free throws by Hilliard to give the Eagles a 27-19 cushion at the break.
 
Howard got as close as seven points (32-25, 15:10) in the second half, but NCCU blew the game open by scoring 13 consecutive points to begin a 22-2 burst to provide the Eagles with a 28-point lead (61-33) with 2:14 remaining.
 
Up next, NCCU visits the Maryland Terrapins (8-1) on Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m.  The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.