Moldoveanu, a transfer from George Mason who gained his eligibility six weeks ago, hit 10 of 17 shots from the floor, 3 of 6 from 3-point range, and 14 of 15 from the free-throw line. He also grabbed nine rebounds as AU won its 20th straight Patriot League game at Bender.

“Vlad was great,” said AU coach Jeff Jones. “We needed every one of those 21 in the first half with Nick [Hendra] being in foul difficulty and [Steven Lumpkins] being in foul difficulty. We didn’t have anywhere else to turn offensively.”

Moldoveanu has been a game-changer for the two-time defending conference champion Eagles (6-15, 3-3), who lost their first seven games, but are 5-7 with the former St. John’s High standout in the lineup.

“I don’t think we realized how good he could be until he was here a month or so last year,” said Jones. “He very well might have been the best player on our team last year. He just wasn’t able to play.”

Moldoveanu, who is from Romania, languished on the bench for a season and a half at GMU before coming to AU. Wednesday he hiked his scoring average to 20.2 points per game, second in the Patriot League to Navy’s Chris Harris (20.6 ppg).

“He got it going. He’s a great player. He’s gonna find a way to score,” said Harris, who had 21 points Wednesday. “We gotta do a better job on that kid. He absolutely went off. I don’t think it was a match-up problem. Romeo Garcia is one of our best defenders in the league.”

But Garcia, a junior, stands just 6-foot-4. Smaller Navy also struggled to stop AU’s low-post duo. Six-foot-eight sophomore Lumpkins (14 points, 6 rebounds) scored 10 of his points in the second half and 6-11 sophomore Riley Grafft (eight points) hit 4 of 4 shots in 12 minutes off the bench. AU out-rebounded Navy 35-23.

Navy (9-12, 3-3) took a 10-4 lead, before Moldoveanu erased it with a pair of 3-pointers – both in transition and both from the same spot on the right wing –33 seconds apart.

Later in the half, AU took the lead for good as Moldoveanu scored nine straight points, giving the Eagles a 25-18 advantage. Moldoveanu finished off the 9-0 run with four free throws. He got two when Navy senior T.J. Topercer was called for a touch foul, two more when Navy coach Billy Lange was slapped with a technical foul for protesting.

Navy rallied in the second half with nine points in three straight possessions — Garcia (7 points) hitting a three and Harris following with another, plus an old fashioned 3-point play.

The Midshipmen cut the lead to 1 point on five occasions, but could never get the lead. With Moldoveanu scoring 10 points in a 6-minute span late, AU regained control. Moldoveanu flashed his repertoire during the run, hitting a three, flashing to the lane for a catch-and-lay-in 3-point play, and draining a pair of mid-range jumpers.

“We’ve talked about having a better balance between shooting threes and staying inside,” said Jones. “Tonight Vlad kind of struck the right balance.”

It’s a balance AU will continue to strive for as it climbs the Patriot League standings. The Eagles have a chance to take a major step in that direction Saturday at first-place Lafayette (14-7, 5-1). Jones believes the climb will continue as long as Moldoveanu realizes what he can be.

“The biggest question was, ‘Who was Vlad?’ He impersonated other people well, but who was he going to be,” said Jones. “I think he’s just starting to figure that out.”

Notes » Navy hosts Colgate (6-14, 2-4) Saturday night.

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