JOHNSON CITY - Overcoming a sluggish first half, the ETSU men's basketball team outscored Carson-Newman 48-32 after the intermission and held the Eagles to just 29 percent shooting on the night, picking up an 81-56 victory in its second and final exhibition game of the preseason Monday night inside Memorial Center.

The Buccaneers enjoyed a strong debut from junior guard Justin Tubbs, who played his first game in the blue and gold and responded with a 17-point, eight-rebound effort. In addition, freshman guard Sheldon Cooley posted 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, while junior guard Micah Williams scored 10 points and grabbed a game-high four steals.

"I thought there was a lot of good out there, but also some bad," said ETSU head coach Murry Bartow, whose team won both of its preseason games by an average of 38.5 points. "Some of the disappointing numbers were our 18 turnovers and we continued to shoot poorly from the free throw line. The bright spots included winning by 25 points without our best player (Mike Smith), holding them to just 29 percent shooting, and shooting 50 percent ourselves."

ETSU will now prepare for its season opener, which will be Saturday at 4 p.m. against Appalachian State. The matchup with the Mountaineers will culminate Homecoming weekend on the ETSU campus, and a reunion of former Buc players is also planned.