SEATTLE – Seattle University men's basketball went 12-for-12 from the floor in the final 12 minutes, 41 seconds of the game on Saturday night and also had a string of 12 straight makes from the free-throw line during that stretch to pull away and beat the Portland State Vikings, 79-60, in its home opener as part of Homecoming & Family Weekend.
Senior forward Will Heimbrodt and senior guard Mason Williams each pumped in 18 points for SU (1-1) inside the Redhawk Center. Senior center Halvine Dzellat added 13 points and junior guard Tyler Boston chipped in 10.
The Redhawks hit just 33 percent from the field (11-of-33) during the first half, which ended in a 28-28 tie.
Down 44-41 with 12:41 to go, Boston started the Redhawks' hot-shooting surge with a pair of free throws. Then the first of those 12 consecutive field goals came with a bit of flair as junior forward Ray Adams stole the ball in backcourt, went coast to coast and slammed down a dunk to put Redhawks on top to stay at 45-44.
The two free throws and the dunk were the first four of 12 consecutive points. Heimbrodt followed with two foul shots and then a traditional three-point play, then got the assist on a 3-pointer by Jaden Bailes for a 53-44 lead.
That was part of a 20-2 scoring run that broke the game open and left the Redhawks with a 61-46 advantage.
The only miss during that entire 12:41 was a free throw with 58.7 seconds left, by which time the outcome was no longer in doubt.
By the Numbers
--With second-half shooting of 84 percent (16-of-19), the Redhawks finished at 51.9 percent for the night (27-of-52). That was slightly better than their 50 percent mark (27 of 54) on Monday at Hawaii.
--Heimbrodt hit 7-of-10 and Dzellat was 4-of-6.
--SU’s defense limited Portland State (1-1) to 35.1 percent shooting (11-of-27), including just 30 percent (9-of-30) during the first half.
--Dzellat pulled down eight rebounds for Seattle U, which had a 39-30 advantage on the boards.
--The Redhawks cleaned up their ball handling considerably with just 12 turnovers after having 20 at Hawaii.
--Seattle U is now 5-1 in home openers during the coaching tenure of Head Coach Chris Victor.
Up Next
The Redhawks play the middle game of an early-season three-game homestand when Texas-San Antonio visits the Redhawk Center on Wednesday, Nov. 11. Tip-off is at 7:00 p.m.
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