Seattle University took the early lead, but Eastern Washington went on a significant run in the first half and was able to hold off any type of Redhawk rally as the Eagles earned an 87-75 victory Saturday night in a non-conference men’s collegiate basketball game at KeyArena.
Isiah Umipig (Federal Way, Wash.) led the Redhawks with 24 points and six assists, hitting four three-pointers along the way. Jarell Flora (Bremerton, Wash.) finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, while Jadon Cohee’s (Langley, B.C.) 12 points all came in the second half and Deshaun Sunderhaus (Conyers, Ga.) contributed 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
A three-pointer by Umipig and baskets from Jack Crook (Manchester, England) and Flora gave the Redhawks a 7-0 lead in the first minute of the game, but Eastern Washington responded, outscoring the Redhawks 16-5 over the next four-and-a-half minutes to take a 16-12 lead.
A traditional three-point play by Shore Adenekan (London, England) tied the game at 22-22 with nine minutes remaining in the first half, but the Eagles scored 13 unanswered points over the next four-and-a-half minutes, the final eight points of the run scored by Ognjen Miljkovic, to pull ahead 35-22. Eastern Washington closed out the half with seven straight points, six of them by Venky Jois, to take a 44-25 lead into halftime.
Eastern Washington (7-1) took its biggest lead of the game at 58-37 with 11:26 left in the second half thanks to a traditional three-point play by Jois. Seattle U could not get any closer than 12 points behind as the Eagles went 16-for-20 from the free throw line in the second half to keep the Redhawks at a distance.
“They (Eastern Washington) spread you out and shoot the ball well. They are playing with a lot of confidence, so we have to give them credit,” Seattle U head coach Cameron Dollar said. “We played better in the second half. Some guys who hadn’t played as much gave us some life and energy after halftime. We just have to get back off the mat.”
Jois shot 13-of-18 from the field and 12-of-15 from the free throw line to finish with 38 points, plus he pulled down seven rebounds and blocked three shots. Miljkovic also blocked three shots to go along with 14 points, seven rebounds, and four assists, while Tyler Harvey finished with 18 points and Drew Brandon notched a double-double with 12 rebounds and 11 assists.
As a team, Seattle U shot 40.6 percent (28-of-69) from the field, including 6-of-25 from behind the three-point line, and 65 percent (13-of-20) from the free throw line. The Redhawks won the rebounding battle, 40-37, including 17 offensive boards, but they could not overcome the Eagles shooting 50 percent (29-of-58) from the field and 77.8 percent (21-of-27) from the free throw line.
Seattle University (3-5) takes fall quarter finals over the next week before heading to San Jose State to face the Spartans next Saturday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. Dave Grosby and Gary Hill Jr. will broadcast the game live on 770 AM KTTH, starting with the pregame show shortly before tipoff.