Jacob Meyer led five scorers in double figures with 16 points as DePaul pulled away late to claim a 78-69 nonconference victory over Eastern Illinois on Tuesday night in Chicago.
Meyer, making his first start of the season while Layden Blocker sat out with a quad injury, drilled 5 of 11 3-pointers on a night when DePaul (5-0) launched 39 triples as a team and hit 15. Troy D’Amico contributed 14 points, Isaiah Rivera scored 12 and David Skogman and JJ Traynor added 11 apiece.
Kooper Jacobi posted 22 points and eight rebounds to lead Eastern Illinois (1-4), which shrugged off a 14-0 DePaul run early in the second half to get as close as three, 61-58, with 4:19 to go. Nakyel Shelton hit 11 of 11 free throws en route to 17 points, while Zion Fruster added 12 for the Panthers.
DePaul bolted out to a 10-5 lead in the first four minutes of the game.
Then things turned into a slog for the Blue Demons, as they scored just two points over the next seven-plus minutes. Eastern Illinois ended up taking a 13-12 lead on Shelton’s two free throws at the 9:44 mark of the first half.
The Panthers’ first lead of the night seemingly motivated DePaul. Meyer cashed in on two 3-pointers and Traynor added a third to give the Blue Demons a 21-18 edge. DePaul wound up with a 29-25 halftime lead, with both teams committing 10 turnovers before the break.
Eastern Illinois came out hot in the second half and seized a 36-34 lead on Fruster’s floater with 17:13 to play. Again, a deficit inspired DePaul to kick it up a notch. Skogman spotted up for three 3-pointers and Meyer added one as part of the 14-0 run to push the Blue Demons to a 48-36 lead.
The Panthers got within 61-58 with 4:19 left when Fruster canned a fadeaway in the paint, then hit a 3-pointer, but Rivera responded with a 3-pointer and Traynor added two free throws to guide DePaul to safety.
–Field Level Media
