The Seattle University men’s basketball team enjoyed its best shooting performance of the young season, but it was not enough as Eastern Washington held on for a 76-70 victory Wednesday afternoon in a rescheduled men’s collegiate basketball game at Reese Court.
The Redhawks hit 51 percent (26-of-51) of their field goal attempts, including 9-of-15 from behind the three-point line. Brendan Westendorf (Kent, Wash.) led the way with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from behind the three-point line, plus he pulled down six rebounds and dished out three assists.
Eastern Washington (2-1) came out of the gates on fire from long distance, hitting six three-pointers in the first 6:15, including three by Austin McBroom, to open a 20-7 lead. Seattle U responded, putting together its own 13-2 run over the next four minutes, capped by five straight points from Manroop Clair (Vancouver, B.C.), to close to within two at 22-20 halfway through the first half.
After a layup by Jadon Cohee (Langley, B.C.) cut the Eagle lead to 30-27 with three minutes remaining in the opening half, Eastern Washington closed out the half by outscoring the Redhawks 8-3, featuring three-pointers by Will Ferris and Sir Washington.
McBroom hit a three-pointer a minute into the second half, and then the two teams basically went back-and-forth over the next 13 minutes, keeping the Eagle lead between seven and 12. Ahead by 10 after a layup by Westendorf, Eastern Washington increased that lead to 68-53 with 5:27 left in regulation with a layup by Bogdan Bliznyuk and a three-pointer from Felix Von Hofe.
Seattle U scored the next 11 points over the span of two-and-a-half minutes, as Westendorf scored five points and Malik Montoya (Federal Way, Wash.), making his collegiate debut, hit back-to-back three-pointers. However, the Redhawks committed a turnover, missed two free throws, and a makeable basket in the next two minutes, while the Eagles went 6-for-8 from the free throw line in the final 43 seconds to ice the game.
“I was pleased with our overall effort. There were some positives that we will continue to build upon,” Seattle U head coach Cameron Dollar said. “Their three-point shooting hurt us in the first half, and our turnovers hurt us in the second half. I’m confident we will execute better on Monday.”
Cohee finished with 11 points and three assists, while Jack Crook (Manchester, England) contributed 10 points, four rebounds, and five assists. Montoya collected nine points in the game, Clair contributed eight points, and Aaron Menzies (Manchester, England) earned six points and a team-high eight rebounds.
Von Hofe hit seven three-pointers as he led Eastern Washington with 25 points, while McBroom scored 16 points. Venky Jois was held to five points, but he contributed to the Eagle victory in other ways with nine rebounds, five assists, and three blocked shots.
Seattle University (0-3) will face Eastern Washington in a rematch next Monday, Nov. 23, starting at 7 p.m. at KeyArena. Tickets for all Seattle U home games at KeyArena are on sale through Ticketmaster. The game will be streamed by the WAC Digital Network (www.wacsports.com/live), and Dave Grosby and Gary Hill Jr. will broadcast the game on 770 AM KTTH, starting with the pregame show shortly before tipoff.