JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Interstat) — East Tennessee State cruised to an 84-55 men’s basketball victory over The Citadel on Friday night at ETSU Athletic Center. The Buccaneers built a commanding 49-27 halftime lead and never relented, improving to 15-6 overall. The Bulldogs fell to 6-15.

ETSU’s dominance was fueled by interior play, outscoring The Citadel 40-14 in the paint and 21-9 off turnovers. The Buccaneers also controlled the boards. A crowd of 3,765 watched the home team sweep the regular-season series, having also won 74-49 on Dec. 30. The result surpassed the pregame point spread favoring East Tennessee State by 17 points.