Utica, NY - The Utica College men's basketball team advanced to 11-2 with an 83-64 win over the Elmira Soaring Eagles Friday night at Miga Court. This marks the Pioneers' seventh-straight win, tying a program record for the most consecutive wins during head coach Sean Coffey's tenure.

The score remained neck-and-neck (33-27) with Utica holding a slim advantage with 3:46 left in the half. The Pioneers closed out the half strong, which created the separation they would hold for the remainder of the game.

Freshman Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) spearheaded the run with six of his 14 points in the final minutes of the half, giving his team a more comfortable 45-34 advantage heading into the locker room. 

Morreale picked up right where he left off in the second half, knocking down his sole 3-pointer of the evening to build the Pioneers' lead to 48-34. Utica would hold onto and build on this lead for the remainder of the contest, securing its second conference win of the season and remaining perfect at home.

Sophomore guard Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) tabbed a team-high 17 points and four assists, while Morreale added eight rebounds on top of his 14-point outing.

Junior center Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) went to work underneath the basket as he has done all season, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds.

Freshman forward Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) and junior guard Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) rounded out the UC score sheet with 12- and 10-point showings, respectively.

Sophomore guard Chris Green (White Plains, NY/Alexander Hamilton) made huge contributions coming off the bench, posting a season-high nine points in addition to his three rebounds and two steals.

UC advances to 2-0 in the Empire 8 with this victory, and it remains atop the E8 in both overall record and conference record.

The Pioneers lace it back up tomorrow on the road against the Hartwick Hawks. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. in Oneonta, New York.