MIDWAY, Ky. - Rio Grande pulled away with 17-5 run late in the second half, taking down Midway by the final of 71-64 in men's basketball Tuesday, the first River States Conference game for each team.

The Eagles came out on fire on both ends, surging to a 16-4 lead in the first 4:10 of action. Midway forced four turnovers in that stretch, the last leading to a breakaway layup by Decoreio Smith.

The lead would quickly fade, as Rio held a 37-19 advantage the rest of the half to take a 41-37 lead into the break, before the Eagles again put together a big run.

Down 43-37, they proceeded to score 11 consecutive points, with 10 coming in the paint.

Making his presence felt down low all night was Maurice Washington Williams, who finished with a 10-point, 13-rebound double-double.

The lead would hold for nearly nine minutes, and after the Red Storm pulled ahead on a Jaelin Johnson dunk, the Eagles answered with an alley-oop dunk by Sam Parrish from Amari Wales to take a 56-55 lead.

But that would be the final advantage Midway would hold. On the ensuing possession, Eli Roberts hit a jumper as part of a stretch that saw Rio hit 10 of its final 13 shots from the floor.

The Eagles proceeded to miss five straight shots after the Parrish dunk, and Trey Robertson delivered the dagger with 55 seconds to play with a 3-pointer. Robertson was a problem all night, scoring 21 points while adding seven rebounds, six assist and three steals.

Offensive rebounding proved to be the biggest difference, with the Red Storm holding a 23-4 advantage in second-chance points.

Wales led the Eagles with 18 points while he and Smith both had five assists. Wales also had a team-best three steals for the Eagles, who fall to 3-5 overall.

Tuesday was the start of a brutal week for the Eagles, who will travel to take on NCAA Division-I Bellarmine in an exhibition in Louisville Wednesday. 

They will then face a pair of nationally ranked NAIA teams this weekend at the Cumberlands Classic in Williamsburg, Ky., starting with a matchup with No. 25 Georgia Gwinnett at 11 a.m. Friday.