SEASON RECAP: Eagles Improve by Three Wins With Best Season in 10 Year

Senior-less Eastern falls a victory shy of a postseason berth, but the progress made has EWU eager for 2014-15 season

A near-miss left the Eastern Washington University men’s basketball team only hungrier for its next opportunity.

Although  they came a victory shy of a Big Sky Conference Tournament berth, the Eagles finished with three more league wins and five more victories overall than a year ago. Eastern established eight school records in the 2013-14 season, including one league mark.

Eastern was 7-4 in its last 11 league games to help EWU finish 15-16 overall and 10-10 in the league. The 15 victories equals the most for the Eagles in 10 years since EWU finished 17-13 in the 2003-04 season. With 40 victories overall and 25 league wins in three seasons under head coach Jim Hayford, this is the best three-year stretch since 2005-08 when Eastern had 41 wins and the best in league play since 2001-04 when the Eagles won 30.

The best news of all is that the Eagles had no seniors on its 2013-14 roster, and the Eagles return highly-regarded sophomores Tyler Harvey and Venky Jois. Harvey was a first team All-Big Sky selection and earned second team honors on the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District 6 team – EWU’s first player honored on that team since Rodney Stuckey in 2007. Jois earned honorable mention accolades for the second-straight year, as well as being the 2012-13 Freshman of the Year in the league. College Sports Madness named Jois (third team) and junior point guard Drew Brandon (second team) to its All-Big Sky Conference squad, and Jois earned first team All-BSC honors from College Hoops Daily.

“We were the youngest team, but starting next season you won’t hear me say that anymore,” said Hayford. “We have balanced classes, depth and experience. We are going to have upper classmen next year and will start juniors and seniors. We have the building finished and had the two premier underclassmen in the league this year.”

Eastern Washington ended the season with a 72-68 loss to Weber State in which the Eagles rallied from an 18-point second half deficit only to miss potential game-tying and game-winning shots in the final seconds. The Eagles finished in a head-to-head tie with Sacramento State for seventh, but were eliminated in the tiebreaker for the final berth in the league tourney because the two teams split their season series and the Hornets picked up a tie-breaking victory over Weber State.

“We were right there,” said Hayford. “Unfortunately our conference tournament is one where every team doesn’t qualify. I can’t judge this year’s team on not going to the postseason tournament, although our goal is to be a perennial playoff team. Last year a 10-10 record tied for fourth in the league, and in my first year we were at .500 (8-8) and hosted a first-round game. Go figure.”

  

Under Hayford, Eastern Has Best Three Seasons All-Time for Most 3-Pointers and Fewest Turnovers . . .

En route to leading the Big Sky in scoring with an average of 76.2 points per game, Eastern finished with the third-most 3-pointers made in school history (251). The top two marks – 283 in 2012 and 264 in 2013 – came in Hayford’s first two seasons at the helm. The previous record was 242 in 2011.

And the Eagles did it while averaging only 12.0 turnovers per game, ranking only behind the 11.8 the Eagles averaged in Hayford’s first season as EWU’s head coach. Again, Eastern’s top three seasons in school history have come under Hayford, having averaged 13.4 in 2013 (the previous record before 2012 was 13.5 in 2000). 

Harvey’s 109 3-Pointers Headlines List of School Records . . .

Harvey was the Big Sky’s leading scorer with a 21.8 average, and ranked in the top 13 nationally in four categories. Through games of March 9, his scoring average ranked eighth, and his combined ranking of 18th in 3-pointers per game (5th, 3.52) and 3-point shooting percentage (13th, 43.3) was third in NCAA Division I. He was also 10th in free throw percentage (89.7).

Harvey set the school’s single season record for 3-pointers made on Feb. 27 when he had seven against UNC, breaking the previous record of 103 set by Shannon Taylor in the 1998-99 season. He finished with 109 for the season, ranking second in Big Sky Conference history behind the league record of 124 (Stephen Sir, Northern Arizona, 2006-07).

Jois, the Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year as a freshman, finished with averages of 13.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 blocked shots per game while making 52.8 percent of his shots from the field. He established a new school record for career blocked shots, with a current total of 115.

Harvey’s perfect 20-of-20 free throw performance against Southern Utah on Jan. 23 was both a school and conference record, and his 20 free throws made was a school mark. He also had 10 3-pointers versus Northern Colorado to set a school record.

The other school records established included the career shooting percentage for Martin Seiferth (currently 64.4 percent to rank ahead of Ron Cox at .629 from 1974-77), and team records for free throws made (38) and attempted (49) versus Southern Utah on Jan. 23, 2014.

“I want to shine a light on all our players,” added Hayford. “I was proud of all of them.”

* The Eagles led the Big Sky Conference in scoring offense (76.1), 3-pointers made per game (8.1), rebounds (36.8), and blocked shots (4.3); were second in defensive field goal percentage (.446); and finished third in assists (13.45) and defensive 3-point field goal percentage (.345).

On All-Big Sky Performers Tyler Harvey and Venky Jois: “Tyler had an outstanding season. He was one of the top perimeter shooters not only in the Big Sky Conference, but in the whole country. It’s fitting for him to be recognized as a first team All-Big Sky player who led the Big Sky in scoring. We’re proud of him. And most importantly, Eagle fans are excited we have to more great seasons ahead with Tyler. I’m glad Venky was recognized as a sophomore too. To have two underclassmen recognized in the all-conference voting really bodes well for where our program is headed.”

Eagles a Victory Away from Berth Thanks to 11 3-pointers and Defense in 77-69 Win

Highlights from EWU's win over ISU - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVOMgm6uEaQ

Eastern can now clinch a Big Sky Conference Tournament berth with a win Saturday when league champion and tourney host Weber State visits

For the Big Sky Conference leader in offense, defense is sometimes an afterthought.

But Eastern Washington University held Idaho State to 34 percent shooting from the field – including just 5-of-26 3-point attempts – and the Eagles bolstered their postseason hopes with a wire-to-wire 77-69 Big Sky Conference men's basketball victory Thursday (March 6) at Reese Court in Cheney, Wash.

A trio of players – sophomore Tyler Harvey, junior Parker Kelly and freshman Felix Von Hofe -- combined for 11 3-pointers for Eastern. Martin Seiferth added a double-double and Harvey and Kelly combined to make 6-of-6 free throws in the final 36 seconds to clinch the win.

“That was a great home win,” said Eastern head coach Jim Hayford, who team is on the cusp of a berth in the Big Sky Conference Tournament. “We defended our home court against a veteran Idaho State team that gave it all they had. Our game plan was solid and our guys executed it.”

Now 14-15 overall and 10-9 in the league, Eastern can wrap-up a postseason berth when they end the regular season against struggling Big Sky Conference regular season champion Weber State on Saturday (March 8) at 2:05 p.m. The final regular season game of the season for the Eagles will be carried live on ESPN 700-AM and www.watchbigsky.com. At halftime, the No. 30 jersey of Eagle legend Ron Cox will be retired.

Eastern is now in a three-way tie for fifth in the Big Sky at 10-9, but only three games separate first through seventh place in the standings – and four from first to ninth. The Eagles can finish anywhere from a fourth-place tie (fifth after tiebreakers) in the league to a tie for seventh (eighth after tiebreakers).

In the event of a loss to WSU, the Eagles won’t know if they’ve advanced to the seven-team Big Sky Conference Tournament until about five hours later, after the rest of the league games conclude. EWU can still advance with a 10-10 record, but would need a combination of help involving a Portland State win over Idaho State, a victory by Montana State over Sacramento State and a Northern Colorado loss at Southern Utah.

Idaho State was in a must-win and hope situation entering Thursday’s game, and is now eliminated at 8-11 in the league and 11-17 overall.

Despite falling at Portland State 66-59 on Thursday, Weber State still leads the league at 13-6 and is 16-11 overall. But WSU has lost four of its last six heading into Saturday’s game at EWU. The Wildcats have clinched at least a share of the league title, and have also wrapped up host status of the tournament taking place March 13-15.

Harvey, ranked 10th in NCAA Division I with a 21.8 scoring average, took over the role at point guard Thursday in place of Drew Brandon, who missed the last 1 1/2 games with a hand injury suffered against UNC. Although the hand is not broken, Brandon played only seven minutes against ISU.

Harvey made only 5-of-18 shots overall and 4-of-14 from the 3-point stripe, but finished with 22 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to finish with his first career double-double. He also tied his career highs with eight assists and four steals.

Kelly added 16 points, seven rebounds to equal a career high, and three assists, but he also did a great job on defense against ISU leading scorer Chris Hansen. He made only 4-of-17 shots in finishing with 11 points – five below his season average of 16.7.

Eastern lost the rebounding battle 43-41 and had twice as many turnovers as ISU (16 to eight). But EWU out-shot the Bengals 47 percent to 34 percent and had six more 3-point baskets.

“Their best offensive player (Hanson) was not able to get going because Parker played locked down on him,” said  Hayford. “It is rare that you play a team and they miss 48 shots. You look at the rebounding -- 43-41 -- and that is a lot of rebounds. So I guess we were playing pretty good defense to make them miss so many (shots).”

Seiferth closed the game with 14 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots. Venky Jois chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds, and neared career highs with six assists and six blocked shots.

“Our veterans stepped up,” praised Hayford. “This is a really solid team win, and I am really proud of our team. We advanced our program tonight.”

Also providing a boost was Von Hofe, who played 16 minutes off the bench. He hit a trio of 3-pointers and scored 11 points, eight in the first half.

“We recruited Felix to be a three-point-shooting specialist,” said Hayford. “He is a really good shooter. He has really come on, particularly in the second half of league. He may be a freshman, but he has a lot of international experience so being in a big game is something he looks forward to. Especially with Drew’s injury, we knew he was going to get looks.”

Eastern jumped out to a quick 16-4 lead as the Eagles made eight of its first 16 shots and ISU made only 1-of-11. After the Bengals cut the lead to six, Eastern ended the half on a 16-8 run to take a 37-23 lead at intermission. Von Hofe had two of EWU’s four 3-pointers in the run, and the freshman equaled his career high with eight points in the first half alone.

The Bengals cut the lead to five in the second half, but in a 24-second span Harvey hit a triple, Jois had a block and Harvey fed Seiferth for a dunk that regained a 48-38 lead with 13:03 to play. Eastern led by no less than eight the rest of the way.

“We had a great first half,” said Hayford. “Credit Idaho State because at halftime they came out knowing their season was on the line. We took their best punches. They would cut it we would come back. They cut it and we would come back.”

Eastern played three games in six days last week, starting with a disappointing 87-76 home loss to Portland State. But the Eagles came back three days later to knock-off then-second place Northern Colorado 80-66 on its home court, then lost to the new owner of second place, North Dakota, 69-67 on a rebound basket at the buzzer.

Harvey set the school’s single season record for 3-pointers made on Feb. 27 against UNC, giving him 104 for the season to eclipse the previous record of 103 set by Shannon Taylor in the 1998-99 season. Now with 109 after the ISU game, Harvey is second in Big Sky Conference history and 15 behind the league record of 124 (Stephen Sir, Northern Arizona, 2006-07).

Harvey entered this week ranked in the top 10 nationally in three categories, and his combined ranking of 12th in 3-pointers per game (6th, 3.62) and 3-point shooting percentage (6th, 45.3) is second in NCAA Division I. His 21.8 scoring average ranks 10th.

Berth on the Line When Eastern Hosts Idaho State & Weber State

Talk about coming down to the wire.

The postseason hopes of the Eastern Washington University men’s basketball team most likely will come down to winning a pair of home games this week, as the Eagles host Idaho State on Thursday (March 6) at 6:05 p.m. Pacific time before concluding the regular season against Big Sky Conference leader Weber State on Saturday (March 8) at 2:05 p.m. Both games will be carried live on ESPN 700-AM and www.watchbigsky.com.

But even then, the Eagles may not know if they’ve advanced to the seven-team Big Sky Conference Tournament until about five hours later, after the rest of the league games conclude. Eastern enters the week in a three-way tie for seventh in the Big Sky at 9-9, but only three games separate second through 10th place in the standings. The Eagles can finish anywhere from second in the league to 10th.

Eastern played three games in six days last week, starting with a disappointing 87-76 home loss to Portland State. But the Eagles came back three days later to knock-off then-second place Northern Colorado 80-66 on its home court, then lost to the new owner of second place, North Dakota, 69-67 on a rebound basket at the buzzer.

“We need to defend our home court – if we had done that on Monday we’re sitting here at 10-8 and not 9-9,” said Hayford. “Who knows how it’s all going to finish up? There are going to be some crazy games in the Big Sky the rest of the season that will come down to the last second too. It’s all a part of being in a league race. We need to win our way in.”

Idaho State is also in a must-win and hope situation entering Thursday’s game, and is now 8-10 in the league and 11-16 overall. Weber State is leading the league at 13-5 and is 16-10 overall, but WSU has lost three of its last five games heading into Thursday’s game at Portland State. The Wildcats have clinched at least a share of the league title, and have also wrapped up host status of the tournament taking place March 13-15.

There are far too many potential ties and tiebreaker situations to even list the scenarios that exist. So while the Eagles control their own destiny to a top seven finish, there exists the possibility that as many as eight teams could finish 11-9 and one or two of them could be left out of the tournament because of tiebreakers.

“What you want is to have a team that knows that every game you play matters,” said Hayford of his senior-less team. “And we are headed into a weekend on our home court where every game does matter. We need fans to come out and cheer them on. Our destiny is in our own hands on our home court.”

Eastern has played its last 1 1/2 games without starting point guard Drew Brandon, who missed the UND game with a hand injury suffered against UNC. Although the hand is not broken, Brandon is questionable this week.

Sophomore Tyler Harvey had 31 points and seven 3-pointers to lead EWU to a season sweep over the Bears and hand UNC its first home loss in 14 outings this season. Against UND, sophomore Venky Jois and junior Martin Seiferth both contributed double-doubles as they combined for 35 points and 26 rebounds.

“We just played a team with seven seniors who have started a lot of games,” said Hayford of UND. “And we played it without our point guard and took it right down to the buzzer. I was proud of our team – they laid it all out there and gave it all they had.”

Harvey set the school’s single season record for 3-pointers made against UNC, giving him 104 for the season to eclipse the previous record of 103 set by Shannon Taylor in the 1998-99 season. Now with 105 after the UND game, Harvey is tied for second in Big Sky Conference history (Cory Schwab, Northern Arizona, 2000-01) and 19 behind the league record of 124 (Stephen Sir, Northern Arizona, 2006-07).

Harvey enters this week ranked in the top 10 nationally in three categories, and his combined ranking of 12th in 3-pointers per game (6th, 3.62) and 3-point shooting percentage (6th, 45.3) is second in NCAA Division I. His 21.8 scoring average ranks 10th.