Eastern’s season reaches end when offense sputters against Montana

MISSOULA – Defense gave them a chance.

Offense – or a lack thereof – took it away.

The season came to an end for the Eastern Washington Eagles men’s basketball team Saturday afternoon with a 58-48 loss to the Montana Grizzlies in the first round of the Big Sky Conference Tournament.

The game, before 3,311 fans at Dahlberg Arena, completed a season-long struggle for the Eagles (8-20), who entered averaging only 62.5 points per game on their way to their first 20-loss season since 1995-96. The Grizzlies defeated EWU three times.

“They really pressured,” EWU three-time, all-conference forward Marc Axton said of Montana. “I think they pressured more than they have in the past. I think they wanted it more. … It’s tough (to say that). This year we definitely struggled. It’s been a difficult year. Coach (Mike) Burns did a great job helping the new guys get along and they’re going to come back ready next year.”

The Grizzlies (16-12), who got 15 points from all-Big Sky post Kamaar Davis, move on to Portland for the tournament semifinals Tuesday night, trying to beat beat bitter rival Montana State for the first time.

“Not to sound arrogant, but I really felt we were ready to win the game today. I thought we were going to win the game,” EWU first-year coach Burns said. “Before the game I thought that, during the game I thought that, and I didn’t dawn on me until the horn sounded that that wasn’t going to be the case. It’s tough, especially when you know it’s over.”

The Eagles shot 35 percent from the field, including 26 percent in the second half. They shot 15 percent on 3-pointers in the second half and 56 percent from the foul line on their way to the second-worst offensive output of the season.

“Our deal was trying to keep them under 60, keep the tempo at that pace because that suits us the best,” Burns said. “The opportunities were there. I thought down the stretch, especially in the last couple minutes, things got a little quick when we could have been a little more poised, but it was the type of game we wanted to play.”

Although EWU had chances until the final minute, the key stretch was a long dry spell early in the second half when the Eagles went 5 minutes, 18 seconds without scoring. The drought between field goals extended to 8:13 and included nine missed shots and five turnovers.

The Grizzlies scored 12 points in that span and led 40-30 before Danny Pariseau’s jumper from the right wing for Eastern with 9:43 to play.

Because of the Eagles’ defense, the Grizzlies weren’t exactly stellar. They shot 41 percent, hitting 3 of 15 on 3-pointers. Montana hit 19 of 30 free throws and had 19 turnovers.

“This time of year they know our stuff as well as we do; we know their stuff as well as they do,” Burns said. “Where we struggled was we would take a quick shot here or force a pass that turned into a turnover. It was just one of those things. We were right there on the cusp.”

Pariseau fed Matt Nelson and Axton for two quick layups to open the second half and tie the game at 28. Then Virgil Matthews of the Grizzlies made two free throws and teammate Kevin Criswell hit a big 3-pointer from the left corner after the Eagles turned over the ball because they couldn’t make an inbounds pass against pressure. Another turnover led to a Davis baseline shot and Montana led 37-28. UM scored 17 points off Eastern turnovers.

Axton made two free throws, but Davis countered that from the line. After another EWU turnover, Matthews hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 10-point lead.

The Eagles closed within 50-46 on a 3-pointer by James Loe with 2:20 to play. But a couple of more misses, including two on free throws, and turnovers stopped the Eagles from cashing in on their last few opportunities.

“The kids gave a tremendous effort, played their tails off,” Burns said. “That’s all I can ask of them. If there is a problem with execution, I’ll take the blame for that.”

Axton, who closed his stellar career having never missed a practice or a game – his last was his school-record 119th – led the Eagles with 12 points but shot just 3 of 11 from the floor.

“It seemed like there were five or six times in the second half where in transition we missed Marc, who was open for good looks,” Burns said. “That’s how it goes sometime.”

Montana 58, E. Washington 48

Eastern Washington (8-20)–Scheffler 2-4 0-0 5, Smith 0-7 0-0 0, Pariseau 3-7 2-2 9, Nelson 4-7 1-4 9, Axton 3-11 5-6 12, Henkel 0-0 0-0 0, Bekkering 3-4 0-0 7, Loe 2-6 1-2 6, Beitinger 0-1 0-2 0, Butorac 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 17-48 9-16 48.

Montana (16-12)–Criswell 3-7 3-5 10, Martin 0-5 0-0 0, Seyfert 2-4 2-4 6, Dlouhy 3-7 2-2 9, Davis 5-11 5-8 15, Matthews 1-3 2-2 5, Strait 2-3 1-4 5, Easley 2-4 4-5 8. Totals 18-44 19-30 58.

Halftime—Montana 28, Eastern Washington 24. 3-point goals—Eastern Washington 5-19 (Bekkering 1-2, Loe 1-2, Scheffler 1-2, Pariseau 1-3, Axton 1-5, Beitinger 0-1, Smith 0-4), Montana 3-15 (Criswell 1-3, Dlouhy 1-3, Matthews 1-3, Davis 0-1, Easley 0-1, Martin 0-4). Fouled out—Nelson. Rebounds—Eastern Washington 28 (Nelson 7), Montana 34 (Dlouhy 7). Assists—Eastern Washington 11 (Pariseau 4), Montana 15 (Martin 4). Total Fouls—Eastern Washington 21, Montana 20. Technicals—Eastern Washington team. A—3,311.