Cold-shooting Eags fall to Weber
You can access an unedited version of EWU's 77-69 Big Sky Conference men's basketball loss to Weber State below.
It wasn't the best way to celebrate Rodney Stuckey's return, but there were some positives to take out of the defeat. Make sure you leave you opinions here.
EAGS FALL TO WEBER WITH STUCKEY IN STANDS
As the rapidly growing line of fans seeking a post-game autograph from the Detroit Pistons’ Rodney Stuckey wrapped around the floor at
And wishing, no doubt, that Stuckey – a former EWU all-American and first-round NBA draft choice, whose No. 3 Eagles jersey had been officially retired during halftime ceremonies an hour or so earlier – could have still been in uniform.
Why?
Because Stuckey, who spent just two seasons at Eastern before bolting to the NBA, did a lot of things very well during his short stay in Cheney. But what he did best was score.
And scoring was the biggest problem Eastern (9-8 overall, 3-2 in the Big Sky) encountered during a crucial 10 ½-minute stretch of its loss to the league-leading Wildcats (9-7, 3-0).
The Eagles, after using a 17-4 run to build a 23-15 lead midway through the first half, made only two of 14 basket tries in the final 11 minutes of the period and, in the process, let Weber loose on a 17-2 run that all but sealed the deal.
Eastern, after falling behind 63-46 with 8:50 remaining, managed to mount a determined comeback that sliced the Wildcats’ advantage 68-65 late in the game, but could get no closer.
The Eagles ended up shooting just 38.3 percent (23-60) from the floor, and a paltry 21.7 percent (5-23) from 3-point range. Still, Earlywine thought it was how his team’s effort at the other end of the floor was affected by its poor shooting that made the biggest difference in the game.
“We became offensive sensitive,” he said, before reeling off a number of easy shots the Eagles had missed just prior to their first-half meltdown. “We had a lot of good shots we didn’t make, but then we dropped our heads and didn’t guard.
“That’s when you have to be tougher, and you’ve got to be more resolute not to let the other team score – and we didn’t do that.”
As a result, Weber’s 5-foot-6 senior guard Kellen McCoy burned the Eagles for 21 points, and junior guard Nick Hansen added 19 as part of a balanced scoring attack Wildcats coach Randy Rahe considered a key, once again, to his team’s success.
“That’s kind of what I like about this team,” said Rahe, who also got 17 points from junior center Steve Panos. “Our kids don’t care who does what, or who scores what. They’re just unbelievably unselfish, and if we can continue with that kind of balance, it makes it hard for people to key on one or two guys.”
Eastern, which got a team-high 20 point – including 17 in the second half, from junior guard Benny Valentine, also showed some scoring balance as junior forward Mark Dunn and senior guard Adris DeLeon each contributed 14 points.
But the Eagles were hampered all game long by the foul problems encountered by junior center Brandon Moore, who played only 10 minutes and fouled out with just under 5 ½ minutes left and Eagles trailing 63-54.
“It was huge,” Earlwine said of the loss of Moore, who did not attempt a field goal the entire game and earned his four points from the foul line. “It jeopardized our ability to score in the post, so then we take a lot more 3-pointers. And we shouldn’t be taking 40 or 45 percent of our shots from the arc.
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Rahe, too, felt
“I really like Brandon Moore,” he said. “I like his attitude, I like his toughness and I think he’s a really great kid. It helps (us) when he’s out of the game, and I know it hurts them.
“We were very fortunate he got in foul trouble and wasn’t able to finish the game, because, to me, he’s kind of their mainstay guy.”
It was Valentine, the Big Sky’s leading scorer, who played the biggest role in Eastern’s comeback. After scoring just three first-half points, he lit the Wildcats up for 12 during a 19-5 Eagles’ run that made things interesting down the stretch.
But EWU also hurt its comeback chances by missing 10 of 19 second-half foul shots.
The Eagles travel to Northern Colorado on Thursday, before returning home to take on