Eagles rally past USF, 96-90

This one was a keeper.

Eastern Washington checked all the boxes in 96-90 win over San Francisco on Sunday night, an uphill all-the-way effort that was rewarded with one of the biggest non-conference home wins in Jim Hayford’s five-plus years in Cheney.

It was a win the Eagles will embrace for, oh, about 24 hours.

“Win or lose, you stay in the mindset that you have to keep growing and keep getting better,” Hayford said. “But let’s be honest, for 18- to 22-year-olds it’s easier when you are winning to keep hearing that.”

Indeed, the Eagles are off to a good start, owning a 5-2 record for only the sixth time in EWU’s 34-year history in Division I.

Less tangibly but even more important, they gained so much Sunday night at Reese Court in another nailbiing win that boosted their confidence in tight games and saw the emergence of junior Sir Washington at point guard.

“The coaches have been on me every single day, pushing and pushing me,” Washington said. “I came out and really wanted to win this for the team.”

Washington got his chance with 20 seconds left and the Eagles up 87-85. Forward Bogdan Bliznyuk felt the defensive pressure at the top of the key and looked for an open man.

“I was yelling, ‘I’m open, I’m open!’” said Washington, who got Bliznyuk’s attention and got the ball in his hands deep in the right corner.

Washington didn’t hesitate, draining a 3 that all but vanquished the previously unbeaten Dons.

Moments later, Washington celebrated his biggest game as an Eagle: 21 points on 7-for-10 shooting, six rebounds and just one turnover in 34 minutes.

“I’ve just been working hard with the coaching staff and on my own time, trying to get better,” Washington said.

The win capped a rally that began almost from the opening tip, as USF (4-1) took the lead from the outset. The Dons made their first six 3-pointers and led by as many as 15 points midway through the first half.

The Eagles got back in the game as forward Felix Von Hofe found his range, hitting six of his first eight shots for 15 first-half points. Washington made a pair of three-point plays to cut the deficit to 46-37 at halftime.

The Dons, who were 12-for-19 from three in the first half, began to cool after intermission, and Eastern began to chip away with Bliznyuk’s relentless drives and Felix Von Hofe’s shooting touch.

At times, USF seemed helpless against the drives by Bliznyuk, who played almost 40 minutes and scored a game-high 31 points while going 12-for-13 from the line.

“We’re a really good team at the line, and we used the dribble to get to the line and to kick out to shooters,” Hayford said.

The Eagles took their first lead, 78-75, on a 3-pointer from Ty Gibson with 4:09 to play. USF tied the game two more times before Eastern took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Von Hofe with 1:44 left.

“This was one of those games where we just had to outscore them,” Hayford said. “And we did, and that’s why it was such an entertaining game.”

The Eagles are at Seattle on Dec. 4, returning for home games against Great Falls on Dec. 8 and Morehead State on Dec. 13.