Four Redhawk players reached double figures in points as Seattle University executed its offense and stopped Mississippi Valley State at key times to defeat the Delta Devils, 84-72, Sunday night in a non-conference men’s collegiate basketball game at KeyArena.
Jack Crook (Manchester, England) shot 11-of-18 from the field as he finished with 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two blocked shots, while Manroop Clair (Vancouver, B.C.) hit six three-pointers as he scored a career-high 22 points. Brendan Westendorf (Kent, Wash.) contributed 18 points, nine assists, six rebounds, and two steals, and William Powell (Huntsville, Ala.) added 11 points, nine rebounds, and six assists to the winning effort.
“We had good energy tonight, especially coming off Friday night’s loss, but we stuck with our game plan and moved the ball around. Plus, we did a great job on the boards, led by our veterans Jack and William,” Seattle U head coach Cameron Dollar said.
Mississippi Valley State (0-10) took an early four-point lead on back-to-back three-pointers by Damian Young and Isaac Williams, but the Redhawks stayed close and eventually took a 33-27 lead thanks to eight unanswered points later in the first half, including consecutive three-pointers from Clair. The Delta Devils scored the next five points to close to within one, but a dunk by Crook off a Westendorf pass gave the Redhawks a 35-32 lead at halftime.
Clair hit a three-pointer on the first possession of the second half to double the Seattle U lead, but MVSU battled back, going on an 11-2 run over a four-minute span to take its biggest lead of the night at 50-44. The Redhawks responded with 10 unanswered points, including traditional three-point plays by Powell and Malik Montoya (Federal Way, Wash.), to pull ahead, 54-50, halfway through the second half.
After a free throw by Young, Seattle U extended its lead into double digits thanks to an 18-3 scoring run over a six-minute span, starting with consecutive three-pointers by Westendorf. After missing their first five free throw attempts, the Redhawks were perfect on their final 11 attempts from the charity stripe, including six straight made free throws down the stretch.
The Redhawks outrebounded the Delta Devils 48-34, led by 12 rebounds from Aaron Menzies (Manchester, England), plus Seattle U shot 47.8 percent (32-of-67) from the field, including 9-of-24 from behind the three-point line. Mississippi Valley State did force 18 turnovers while committing only 13 turnovers, but Seattle U scored more points off turnovers than the Delta Devils (17-14).
Young led MVSU with 22 points and six steals, while Marcus Romain notched a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. MVSU shot 39.4 percent (26-of-66) from the field, including 9-of-25 from behind the three-point line, and 61.1 percent (11-of-18) from the free throw line.
Seattle University (3-5) will concentrate on its fall quarter finals, then head to Birmingham, Ala., to face UAB next Sunday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. local time (5 p.m. Pacific Time). Dave Grosby and Gary Hill Jr. will broadcast the game live on 770 AM KTTH, starting with the pregame show shortly before tipoff.