Reed Baker scored a career-high 28 points and Florida Gulf Coast defeated Southeast Missouri State 89-78 on Tuesday night.
The Eagles (1-1) scored 53 points in the second half of their home opener, leading to their highest scoring output since joining Division I for the 2007-08 season. Marlon Rivera played a big role, narrowly missing the school's first-ever triple-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists.
Leon Powell had 26 points and 13 rebounds, his second consecutive double-double, to lead Southeast Missouri (0-2). Though the Redhawks led 37-36 at halftime, they couldn't hold down the hot-shooting Eagles, who made 20 of 34 field-goal attempts in the second half. The Redhawks hurt themselves with 21 turnovers.
Baker was 10 of 12 from the field for the game, scoring 13 points in the first half and 15 in the second.
