FAIRMONT, W.Va. -- The 23^rd-ranked Fairmont State men's basketball team broke away from Davis & Elkins midway through the second half to take an 87-70 win over the Senators on Sunday afternoon at Joe Retton Arena. Sunday's game was sponsored by YES Chevrolet in Hurricane, W.Va.
 
Cole VonHandorf finished the afternoon with a team-high 21 points and eight rebounds, while Isaiah Sanders added a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.

The Falcons (2-0, 2-0 MEC) trailed 54-53 with 13:10 to go, but went on a game-changing 18-7 run to take the lead at 69-61 with just over seven minutes remaining. Przemyslaw Golek had eight points during that stretch for Fairmont State. The Falcons continued to build on its lead the rest of the way to take the double-digit win.
 
The game featured 11 ties and 17 lead changes before the Falcons closed out the game with scoring-run that began at the 13:10 mark.

Fairmont State shot just 37 percent from the field, and just 19 percent from three, but had a 66-47 lead on the glass. The Falcons had 30-13 advantage in second-chance points.
 
The Falcons also forced 17 D&E turnovers (10 forced) and held a 19-7 advantage in points off turnovers. FSU scored 20 points on the fast break.

In addition to the performances by VonHandorf and Sanders, the Falcons also got 17 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals from Dale Bonner, 15 points and seven boards from Golek and 10 points and nine rebounds from Seth Younkin in the post. Zyon Dobbs was also active with seven points, nine rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals.

Gyasi Powell had 21 points to lead Davis & Elkins (1-1, 1-1 MEC). Marcus Fleming added 19 more points and also had 13 rebounds to record a double-double. Sam Rolle contributed 14 points, seven assists and four steals. Breland Walton was also two points away from a double-double, finishing the game with eight points and 11 rebounds.
 
D&E shot just 34 percent from the field, including a dismal 4-of-23 performance from behind the arc. The Senators were also just 12-of-21 from the free throw line.
 
The Falcons will now prepare for a top-25 showdown against No. 8 West Liberty on Wednesday evening. Tip is set for 7:30 p.m. inside Joe Retton Arena.