A Double Setback For Eastern Bulldogs Romp By 22; Eagles Center Down, Out

Steve Aggers knew going in to Monday night’s game against Gonzaga that there were two things his young Eastern Washington basketball team could not afford at this point in the season - another confidence-killing loss and an injury to a key player.

This morning, Aggers and his Eagles are trying to cope with both after losing starting center Jason Humbert to a season-ending knee injury during a devastating 81-59 non-conference loss to the Bulldogs at Reese Court.

Gonzaga (4-2) rediscovered its perimeter offense and shot Eastern (1-2) out of its own gymnasium in front of a crowd of 1,650.

Guards Matt Santangelo and Richie Frahm, who have both struggled with their shooting strokes of late, combined for 33 points and center Jeremy Eaton added 11 as the Bulldogs won their second straight.

The Eagles got an almost-silent 14 points from Shannon Taylor and made 10 of 20 3-point attempts. But aside from that, there was little to like about the effort, which left Aggers wondering how his players will respond to the loss of Humbert and a second-consecutive blowout defeat.

“We’re at a crossroads with our team right now,” admitted Aggers, whose Eagles were hoping to bounce back from last Wednesday’s 94-63 loss at California. “We’re very concerned about back-to-back tough losses … about us losing our confidence and getting down. “This is a young team, a very inexperienced team, and we have to guard against that. Our coaching staff has to be mature enough to hang in there and keep working and find some solutions. And we will do that.”

But without Humbert, it would appear, after the 6-foot-10 junior went down midway through the first half with what was diagnosed by trainers as a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Still, it is not likely Humbert’s presence would have made a difference in Monday’s outcome. Gonzaga was a far superior team on this night, both on the perimeter and in the middle.

The Bulldogs shot nearly 50 percent from the field (31 of 63), made 11 of 24 3-point tries and abused the Eagles on the boards, 52-32.

Still, the key was the emergence of Santangelo, who finished with 17 points, and Frahm, who added 16, from their recent shooting funks.

“They’re both great shooters and great shooters are going to go through (bad) times,” Bulldogs coach Dan Monson said. “You just hope two guys aren’t doing it at the same time.

“I thought our offense got them both a little bit better looks, with their feet set, tonight.”

Frahm said the shots might not have been that much easier, but they felt like they were.

“I just think it’s a game of averages,” said the 6-5 junior, who was 6 for 13 from the field, including 4 of 9 on 3-pointers. “I’ve just got to stick with it and keep taking the shots the offense develops for me.”

Eastern ended up on the other end of the shooting spectrum, converting just 21 of 67 basket tries. Taylor was just 4 for 11 and sophomore point guard Deon Williams, who finished with just six points, was 2 for 13.

Still, the Eagles managed to hang around early, thanks to some remarkably accurate long-range bombs that seemed to startle Gonzaga’s perimeter defenders.

Eastern’s first five baskets were 3-pointers - several of which came from NBA range.

Monson said he warned his players about the seemingly limitless shooting range of Eastern’s guards, but felt they were still surprised by several of the shots that were launched early.

“Actually, we weren’t surprised by how many shot they took,” Frahm said, “but we were a little surprised by how many went in. Those are shots our coach won’t allow us to take, but they have the athletes to knock them down, so …”

The downside to EWU’s early outside shooting was that the Eagles couldn’t get anything to drop from inside. At one point they were 8 of 11 on 3-pointers and just 2 of 13 on shots from inside the 3-point line.

“Right now, we have no inside game,” lamented Aggers. “We’ve got to figure out how to get some offense from our post players - whether that means putting smaller guys in there or whatever - because what we’re doing now isn’t very successful.”

Aggers doesn’t have much time to find a cure. The Eagles continue their grueling early season schedule with a 7:05 Reese Court matchup against Washington State on Saturday.

Gonzaga takes to the road to play in the four-team Hawkeye Invitational that opens Friday in Iowa City, Iowa. The Bulldogs first-round opponent is Detroit Mercy.

Gonzaga 81, E. Washington 59

Gonzaga (4-2) - Frahm 6-13 0-2 16, Calvary 2-2 0-0 4, Eaton 5-11 1-1 11, Hall 2-7 2-3 6, Santangelo 5-11 4-4 17, Floyd 3-4 0-0 9, Leasure 1-1 0-0 3, Spink 2-3 0-0 4, Nilson 1-2 0-1 2, Dench 4-9 1-4 9. Totals 31-63 8-15 81.

Eastern Washington (1-3) - Taylor 4-11 2-2 14, Fitzgerald 1-4 0-0 3, Humbert 0-3 1-2 1, Williams 2-13 1-4 6, McGee 4-9 0-1 9, Levy 1-6 2-2 4, Quinto 0-1 0-0 0, Hansen 2-6 0-2 5, Walker 4-6 1-1 11, White 0-2 0-0 0, Johnson 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 21-67 7-14 59.

Halftime-Gonzaga 47, E. Washington 32. 3-Point goals- Gonzaga 11-24 (Frahm 4-9, Santangelo 3-4, Floyd 3-4, Hall 0-4, Leasure 1-1, Dench 0-2) E. Washington 10-20 (Taylor 4-7, Hansen 1-4, Walker 2-3, Williams 1-3, Fitzgerald 1-2). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Gonzaga 52 (Frahm 8), E. Washington 32 (Johnson 7). Assists-Gonzaga 19 (Hall, Santangelo 6), E. Washington 10 (Williams 3). Total fouls-Gonzaga 15, E. Washington 17. Technicals-Gonzaga, Spink. A-1,650.