Newark, Del. (Dec. 7, 2014) --- Showing no ill effects from its nearly 10 thousand mile trip to Hawaii this week, the Delaware State men's basketball team led from start to finish in a 66-53 win over Delaware at the Carpenter Center today.

Kendall Gray recorded his fourth straight double-double, tallying a career-high 21 points and 12 rebounds, both game highs, to lead the Hornets.

Gray, who was nine-for-14 from the field, has hit 32 of his last 46 shots over the past five games (.696). He has six double-doubles this season and 18 in his career.

His previous career scoring high was 20 points vs. Norfolk State last season.

"We expect a lot from Kendall and he came through in a big way today," said Delaware State head coach Keith Walker. "His performance, along with the defensive effort by the entire team, were keys to the win."

Walker said his team's performance against Delaware is a sign that the Hornets are making progress this season.

"Certainly, there was concern about our stamina following the Hawaii trip, but the guys were focused and executed the game plan, especially on the defensive end. Our veteran leadership really made the difference today."

The Hornets started fast, scoring the first four points on a jumper by Gray and a lay-up by Tyshawn Bell (nine points).

DSU stretched its lead to 12-5 on a steal and dunk by DeAndre Haywood with 15:04 left in the first half.

After Delaware pulled to within 19-16, the Hornets began to take control of the game.

Gray capped off a 7-0 run with a short jumper to give the Hornets a 26-16 lead with 5:25 to go before halftime. Gray had five of the seven points, while the Hens missed each of their three shots and committed a turnover during the DSU spurt.

The Hornets were held without a field goal in the last five minutes of the half, but stretched their lead to 32-21 at the break.

Delaware State also started quickly in the second half, getting a three-pointer from Bell on its first possession and a dunk by Gray a minute later to open up a 37-21 lead.

The Hornets opened up their biggest lead of the game when Amere May (10 points) and Charles Burley (six points) hit back-to-back three-pointers nearly six minutes into the second half. Burley's three-ball gave DSU a 47-28 lead with 14:14 left to play.

Delaware answered with a 16-6 run, and pulled to within 53-44 on three-point shot by Kory Holden at the 6:14 mark of the second half.

The Hornets responded with a 9-0 run of their own to put the game away. Freshman Todd Hughes (eight points) capped off the spurt with a free throw to give DSU a 62-44 lead with 2:54 remaining in the game.

Once again, it was the Hornet defense that keyed the spurt, forcing the Hens to miss each of its four shots during the rally.  

Delaware State was 23-for-54 from the field (42.6%), but just four-of-18 from three-point territory (22.2%). The Hens were 30.4% from the field, hitting on 17 of their 56 shots.

The Hornets won the battle of the boards, outrebounding the Hens 45-34.

Delaware State won its second straight game at the Carpenter Center to cut Delaware's lead in the all-time series between the state's two Division I programs to 11-4. The road team has won each of the last four games in the series. The margin of victory was DSU's largest in the series.

Delaware State has won two of its last three games to improve to 4-4 this season. Delaware fell to 0-7.   

The victory was the 100th as a collegiate head coach for DSU's Keith Walker, who collected 91 wins at Division II Shaw from 1993 to 2000. 

The Hornets are home for the first time since Nov. 17 when they host Campbell in their next outing this Wednesday (Dec. 10). Game time is 7 p.m. in Memorial Hall.