Defensive-Minded Nau Cools Off Eastern Eagles

Eastern Washington, the Big Sky Conference’s notorious streak-buster, had a streak of its own snapped at Northern Arizona Saturday night.

The Eagles, who had already ended long home-court win streaks by Weber State and Cal State Northridge this season, couldn’t derail the Big Sky’s hottest basketball team. NAU won its 10th straight game after an 0-4 start in conference play, limiting the Eagles to just 37 percent shooting from the floor and picking up a 76-68 victory. The loss snapped Eastern’s own six-game winning streak.

Northern Arizona played a great game defensively, Eastern Washington coach Steve Aggers said.

“I thought they were the aggressor,” he said. “That’s why they are leading our league in defense. They had a really good night in terms of effort and energy level.”

Still, Eastern Washington (14-10, 11-3 Big Sky) controls its fate as far as hosting the Big Sky Tournament goes. The Eagles own a one-game edge in the standings over the Lumberjacks (16-9, 10-4) and Montana. If they win their final two home games this week against Montana and Montana State, they will be the host team for the tournament.

“We just want to win,” EWU center Chris White said. “We want to leave no doubts about it. We want to host the tournament.”

The Eagles won their first meeting with NAU’s Lumberjacks in Cheney by scoring at will in the low post while NAU’s 7-foot center Dan McClintock was on the bench, nursing a tender ankle. The tables were turned Saturday night.

A healthy McClintock dominated the paint when he wasn’t in foul trouble. He scored 18 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked six shots while taking Eastern big men White and Kareem Hunter out of the equation.

Early on, McClintock was unstoppable, NAU coach Mike Adras said.

“What stopped him was foul trouble,” Adras said. “Dan was really in tune in this ballgame. He was ready to go.”

When McClintock was in foul trouble, forward Ross Land was in control. The Lumberjacks’ leading scorer tallied 26 points, with 21 of those coming in the second half.

“Ross Land was just an absolute terror,” Aggers said. “He looked like the MVP of our league tonight.”

The Eagles had their chances, but were shut down by NAU’s stifling defense. The Lumberjacks took a 14-point lead in the first half, only to have the Eagles roar back behind the hot shooting of Dennis Fitzgerald. He spurred a 14-0 run with nine points late in the half to help Eastern tie the game.

NAU built an 11-point edge in the second half before the Eagles mounted one last charge. Trailing 69-61 with 4:10 to play, Eastern rattled off eight straight points capped by a 3-pointer from guard Ryan Hansen with 2:11 to play.

The Lumberjacks answered with Lopez’s 15-foot running jumper with 1:42 left, making its 71-68. The Lumberjacks clamped down defensively, limiting the shots on EWU’s next possession and forcing Jamal Jones into an awkward 17-footer that fell short. NAU hit five of its six free throws down the stretch and the Eagles didn’t another good look at the basket.

Fitzgerald led EWU with 17 points. Hansen was the only other Eagle to hit double figures, scoring 15 points.

N. Arizona 76, E. Washington 68

E. Washington (14-10) - Hunter 2-5 3-4 7, White 3-8 1-2 7, Williams 2-11 0-1 5, Hansen 5-8 2-4 15, Olson 2-7 1-2 7, Levy 0-0 1-5 1, Quinto 1-1 0-0 2, Jones 2-9 2-2 7, Fitzgerald 5-10 4-7 17, McKie 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-59 14-27 68.

N. Arizona (16-9) - Land 7-16 9-10 26, Hix 2-12 2-3 6, McClintock 6-9 6-7 18, Lopez 3-6 4-4 12, Schwab 1-4 1-2 3, Gebhardt 0-0 0-0 0, Rieck 0-1 0-0 0, McDade 3-5 0-0 7, King 0-0 0-0 0, Wolthers 0-1 0-0 0, Grundman 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 24-56 22-26 76.

Halftime-N. Arizona 39, E. Washington 36. 3-Point goals-E. Washington 10-25 (Hansen 3-5, Fitzgerald 3-5, Olson 2-4, Williams 1-5, Jones 1-6), N. Arizona 6-19 (Land 3-7, Lopez 2-3, McDade 1-1, Rieck 0-1, Schwab 0-3, Hix 0-4). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-E. Washington 48 (White, Levy 7), N. Arizona 40 (Hix 8). Assists-E. Washington 13 (Williams 4), N. Arizona 11 (Land, Lopez 3). Total fouls-E. Washington 23, N. Arizona 22. A-3,723.