Alex Jones (Phoenix, Ariz.) led the way for Seattle U with 21 points, plus he pulled down seven rebounds, while Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.) earned 15 points and a game-high nine rebounds and Gavin Gilmore (Pasco, Wash.) was perfect in the shooting department as he contributed 10 points and four rebounds. As a team, Seattle University outscored Eastern Washington in the paint, 40-8, and won the rebounding battle, 49-26, including 20 offensive boards.
"Our guys competed tonight, and we did a phenomenal job defensively against them. I am really proud of our effort," head coach Cameron Dollar said. "We did a good job as a team of getting the ball inside to Alex and Aaron, and they combined to go 13-of-25 plus went to the line 14 times, which is good."
After Eastern Washington scored the first basket of the game, Seattle U took control with a 16-5 run to take a nine-point lead (16-7) halfway through the first half. Kevin Winford scored the next five points to bring the Eagles within four at 16-12, but the Redhawks responded by outscoring the visitors, 16-6, to extend their advantage to 32-18 before Eastern Washington scored the final five points of the half to go into the locker room at halftime down 32-23.
The second half was a series of surges, starting with back-to-back baskets by Jones and a layup from Gilmore as Seattle U scored six unanswered points to take a 41-28 lead six minutes into the second half. The Eagles used the three-point shot to close the gap, as back-to-back three-pointers from Jeffrey Forbes and Glen Dean brought them to within six at 49-43 with 8:47 left in the second half.
After Gilmore and Jones hit consecutive shots, Tremayne Johnson and Dean hit long distance baskets to bring the Eagles to within four at 53-49, but Dean's basket would be the last field goal for Eastern Washington, as Seattle U closed the game on a 7-2 run over the last five minutes. The Eagles missed their last six field goal attempts, and the Redhawks pulled down two key offensive rebounds to prevent Eastern Washington from coming any closer.
Eastern Washington (4-10) was led by Winford with 11 points and Johnson with 10 points and four rebounds. Dean collected nine points, three rebounds, five assists, and two steals, and Laron Griffin picked up six points, eight rebounds, and two blocked shots in the game. As a team, the Eagles shot 32.7 percent (17-of-52) from the field, including 10-of-26 from behind the three-point line, and 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from the free throw line.
Seattle University also struggled to find its offensive touch, hitting only 38.2 percent (21-of-55) from the field, including just 1-of-14 from behind the three-point arc. The Redhawks did make 17-of-23 attempts from the charity stripe and forced Eastern Washington into 19 turnovers, but the home team did commit 20 turnovers during the contest.
Seattle University (6-11) will welcome Cal State Northridge to KeyArena Saturday, Jan. 8, for a 7:10 p.m. tipoff. Due to its coverage of the Seattle Seahawks playoff game, 710 ESPN Seattle will tape-delay the broadcast of the Seattle U game to start at 8 p.m., with Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., providing the play-by-play from courtside.