Stuckey, bench propel Eagles

GREELEY, Colo. – Rodney Stuckey scored 16 of his game-high 25 points in the second half and had 10 assists to lead Eastern Washington to an 88-87 victory over Northern Colorado Thursday night.

Stuckey was 4 for 9 shooting in the second half. Reserve Michael Taylor had 11 points for Eastern Washington (8-7, 2-1 Big Sky Conference). The Eagles shot 60 percent from the field. Eastern had seven players score at least eight points and received a total of 42 points from its bench.

“They have been phenomenal this season and they were again tonight,” said Eagles head coach Mike Burns of his bench, which has now scored 77 points in EWU’s two league victories. “Without their contributions, we don’t win. You have to take your hat off to them.”

Dwayne Birden led Northern Colorado (2-13, 0-3) with 29 points. Kirk Archibeque added 24 points and 10 rebounds as the Bears lost their fifth straight.

Stuckey scored eight points on two 3-pointers in the first two minutes of the second half as Eastern Washington pushed its lead to 58-42. The Bears scored the next eight points including 3-pointers by Birden and Sean Taibi to make it a 58-50 game, but Brandon Moore answered with a pair of dunks to get the Eagles’ lead to 62-49.

Northern Colorado got within 79-74 on two free throws each by Archibeque and Birden with 2:51 left. Birden’s layup and free throw pulled the Bears even closer, 86-84 with 17 seconds remaining, before Stuckey and Rhett Humphrey sealed the game with a free throw each in the last 13 seconds.

Stuckey didn’t make a shot from the field until the final 2:27 of the first half and had nine points, but Eastern Washington led 47-37 at intermission. Eight other Eagles scored points and EWU took a 34-25 lead after the second of two layups off steals by Matt Penocello.

Stuckey, who held Taibi, Northern Colorado’s leading scorer, without a point in the first half, hit two shots within a 30-second span to extend Eastern Washington’s lead to 39-28 with 2:14 to go.