MIDDLETOWN, Ohio - Ricardo Alliman racked up career-highs of 24 points and 14 rebounds as NAIA Division II No. 7 Cedarville pulled away in the second half for a 99-76 victory at Miami-Middletown to begin the 2008-09 campaign.

The outcome made Pat Estepp a winner in his first game as head coach.

The Yellow Jackets scored the first seven points of the game and built the margin to as much as 11 points, but they struggled to put away the Thunderhawks. It was a slim 40-35 difference at halftime and MUM recovered to take a 52-50 lead with 13:15 left.

Matt Harner, who poured in a career-high 21 points, buried one of his five three-pointers to give the Yellow Jackets the lead for good. That sparked a run of 16 unanswered points over the next three minutes to finally place the visitors in control.

Alliman muscled in 9-of-12 shots from the field and completed his all-around performance with four assists and a blocked shot. Christopher Walker came off the bench with 14 points while Grant Walker and Daniel Rose chipped in 10 points each. [STATS]