Coming off a tough loss the previous night, the seventh-ranked men’s basketball team cut down on its mistakes, committing only nine turnovers while continuing its solid offensive play in defeating Concordia College of New York, 93-70, Saturday night in the Oak Harbor Freight Lines Classic at Royal Brougham Pavilion.
Four players scored in double figures for , led by Ricky Berry (), who scored a career-high 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, including 4-of-5 from behind the three-point line. Nearly earning a double-double, Michael Wright () also posted a career high in scoring with 14 points, plus he pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.
Michael Knight () shot 6-of-8 from the field, including 3-of-5 from long distance, to score 18 points in 15 minutes of action. Leigh Swanson (, ) also hit double digits with ten points, while Shaun Burl () led the way with six assists, part of SeattleU’s total of 24 assists. As a team, the Redhawks shot 53.4 percent from the field, including 8-of-16 from the three-point line, and 85.2 percent from the free throw line.
In a reverse of Friday night’s game, was the team to jump out to a 7-0 lead. The SeattleU bench helped extend the lead midway through the first half, as two three-pointers by Knight and one long distance shot by Drew Harris (Yakima, Wash.) allowed the Redhawks to take a 29-14 lead. Thanks in part to seven points from Jetmir Shala, Concordia (4-7) was able to cut the advantage in half at 43-35 going into halftime.
After trading baskets early in the second half, started to pull away as its defense stiffened, allowing only four Concordia field goals in the final 12 minutes of the game. The Redhawks won the rebounding battle, 31-29, and forced 16 Clipper turnovers during the night.
William Eason led Concordia with 20 points, shooting 6-of-7 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line. Eason, who scored 16 of his points in the second half, also blocked four shots during the contest. Richard Fields, the team’s leading scorer coming into the game, finished with 13 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
(7-2) will start conference play next weekend, heading east to face Montana State Billings Saturday, Jan. 5, beginning at 7 p.m. local time. SeattleU then returns to the to face crosstown rival Seattle Pacific Thursday, Jan. 10, beginning at 7:30 p.m.