SEATTLE – Seattle University men's basketball held visiting Utah Tech to a season low 15 field goals while getting offensive production up and down the lineup as the Redhawks won their second consecutive Western Athletic Conference game, 82-62, Thursday night in the Redhawk Center.
Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe was again the cog of the Redhawks' attack, as the graduate forward finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds for his ninth double double of the season. John Christofilis added 12 points and Paris Dawson finished with 11 as 10 total Redhawks scored on the night. Kobe Williamson had nine points and DaSean Stevens had eight.
"M was a monster," said Head Coach Chris Victor of Moncrieffe. "He took over the second half completely. We kept going through him on offense and he was making the right reads, making the right pass, scoring the basketball. Also DaSean Stevens coming in the first half when we were struggling to score. He gave us a really nice bump on offense."
The Redhawks (7-10, 2-1 WAC) were slow to get their offense going, but used their defense to get rolling. Trailing 14-10 at the 9:18 mark of the first half, they went on a 16-2 run, knocking down seven straight field goals and turned three consecutive steals into six straight points to lead 26-16.
The Trailblazers (6-12, 2-1 WAC) used an 8-0 spurt to trim Seattle U's lead to just one, but Dawson knocked down a three and, following two Utah Tech free throws, the Redhawks finished the frame with back-to-back second-chance buckets, including a buzzer beater by Dawson to lead 34-28 at the break.
The early goings of the second half went back and forth early and the Trailblazers would briefly take the lead on back-to-back threes, 45-42 with 12:32 to play.
But Seattle U would take over from there, using a 13-0 run to open up a 10-point lead, 55-45, with 9:14 minutes to play. The Trailblazers would manage just three field goals for the remainder of the game as the Redhawks cruised to their largest margin of victory over a DI opponent this season.
"That was our best defensive performance of the year for a full 40 minutes," said Victor. "We were able to extend the lead because we were getting stops. I'm proud of these guys for being consistent on defense and in their effort."
The Redhawks conclude their season-long, three-game homestead on Saturday, hosting Southern Utah in a 5 p.m. tip-off from the Redhawk Center.
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