DURHAM, N.C. – North Carolina Central University had to wait quite a while before it could finally play inside McDougald-McLendon Arena, and the Eagles took full advantage of playing at home with a 94-61 victory over Carver College on Friday, Jan. 29.
 
This game goes into the history books as the latest recorded home opener for the NCCU (2-3) men's basketball program, passing a Jan. 5, 1949 game against Tennessee State in the 1948-49 season.
 
NCCU and Carver (0-20) kept each other at arms-length in the opening stages of the game, but the Eagles put together a 9-0 run to take a 20-11 advantage eight minutes into the game, and never looked back from there.  NCCU shot 50.0 percent from the floor in the first half on the way to a 47-26 lead, and that was helped by an 11-point outburst from freshman Justin Wright (Greenville, N.C.) including a tip-in in the final seconds of the period.
 
The Eagles became even more accurate in the second half, as the squad knocked down shots at an impressive 58.8 percent clip on the way to a 94-61 final score.  Deven Palmer (Hyde Park, Mass.) took his turn to shine in the second half as he drilled four consecutive three-pointers on his way to a career-high five treys made as an Eagle for a total of 17 points and five boards.
 
C.J. Keyser (Baltimore, Md.) also exploded in the second half as he scored 13 points after the intermission on the way to a game-high 22 points and a joint game-high four steals.  Jordan Perkins (Greensboro, N.C.) came one assist shy of a double-double with nine helpers and 10 points, and Wright stuffed the stat sheet as he finished with career-highs of 12 points, six assists, six rebounds, and four steals.
 
The Cougars saw three players reach double-digits, led by Stephon Auguste (Frederiksted, U.S.V.I.) and Bryson Scott (Rochester, N.Y.) with 15 points, and Antwon Ferrell (Newnan, Ga.) followed with 14 points.
 
As a team, the Eagles helped each other with 25 assists, the most since the Eagles reached that same mark against Howard on Feb. 24, 2020.
 
The Eagles will stay at home and enter Southern Division play in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference on Monday, Feb. 1 against South Carolina State at 9:00 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN2.