Seniors Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.), Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.), and Eric Wallace (Winston-Salem, N.C.) led Seattle University to its eighth straight victory at KeyArena, as the Redhawks concluded the 2011-12 season with a 94-83 victory over Portland State Saturday night.
Broussard shot 12-of-18 from the field on his way to a 28-point, seven-rebound performance, while Wallace notched his third double-double of the season with 17 points and 15 rebounds. Burrell contributed 15 points, six assists, and three steals as the Redhawks completed the season by winning nine of their last 12 games.
After Charles Odum scored the first basket of the game, the Redhawks scored six straight points, but the Vikings would respond with a three-pointer by Odum and a layup from Chehales Tapscott to take an 11-10 lead. Broussard hit a three-pointer to allow the Redhawks to regain the lead, but Lateef McMullan hit a three-pointer with 13:22 left in the first half to pull Portland State to within one at 17-16.
Broussard scored seven points during a 9-2 Redhawk run to extend Seattle U's lead to 26-18 two minutes later. The two teams traded baskets at a furious pace, but Portland State was able to stay within striking distance by scoring the last four points of the half with a dunk by Odum and a layup from Renado Parker to cut the Redhawks' lead to 47-43 at halftime.
Seattle U took control of the game in the second half, scoring the first 11 points after halftime, punctuating the run with an alley-oop from Burrell to Carter for a dunk. Portland State fought back, scoring six straight points to pull to within nine with 14:13 left in the second half, and then answering a 9-2 Redhawk run with seven unanswered points to again bring its deficit into single digits.
Back-to-back layups by Broussard and Wallace put Seattle U ahead, 82-69, with 4:24 left in the second half, but a three-pointer from Gary Winston and layups by Parker, Winston, and Tapscott keyed a 9-2 Viking run that pulled Portland State within six at 84-78 with two minutes remaining in regulation. Seattle U held off the Vikings thanks to its free throw shooting down the stretch, as Burrell and Prince Obasi (Reseda, Calif.) combined to go 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.
Portland State (17-15) was led by Parker, who contributed 20 points off the bench on 8-of-13 shooting from the field. Odum and Winston each scored 19 points, and Tapscott added 10 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
As a team, Seattle U shot 50.7 percent (35-of-69) from the field and 87.5 percent (21-of-24) from the free throw line, plus the Redhawks dominated the boards, pulling down 47 rebounds while Portland State grabbed only 27 rebounds. 17 of Seattle U's rebounds came on the offensive end, leading to 22 second chance points.
Seattle University finishes the 2011-12 season with a 12-15 overall record, with 10 letterwinners who saw action this season eligible to return for the 2012-13 campaign. The Redhawks will move into the Western Athletic Conference next season and be immediately eligible for the conference title and an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.