Who's Bret Vandergard and what's he done for us lately? [DDSCB3]

[PointGuard 70]

NCAA Championship

 

#1 seed Duke-76, #1 seed UCLA-63

[PointGuard 70]

Catherine Olaffsen, Swede’s wife

 

[beaming now that Swede has been released from jail and cleared of all charges and that their daughter, Kelli, is finally safe and home with them.]

Catherine: Swede, your heart problems, the weird happenings within the basketball program, your incarceration...it’s all been too much. It’s time for you to take a break.

Swede: Oh come on now, Cat girl. I’m a big boy and can take it.

Catherine: I most certainly know better than that!

Kelli: Yes, Dad. You need some rest and relaxation. I’ve made reservations for a condo on Kauai. And I’ve got airline tickets for you, Mom and me. And the whole thing is non-refundable. So, knowing how much of a tight-wad you are, I am CERTAIN that you will understand that we HAVE to go.

Swede: Alright, alright! Women!

[PointGuard 70]

Inevitable Foreshadowing

 

A Mysterious stranger boards the plane in coach class and follows the Olafson family to Hawaii.........

 

[Copied from post by CoachC in Wolverine Studios forum]

[PointGuard 70]

Awards

 

Big Sky 1st Team All Conference: PF Cory Davis

Big Sky 2nd Team All Conference: C Joseph Palmer

Big Sky Coach of the Year: Bret Vandergard

[PointGuard 70]

Jamal Smith, 1st Asst Coach

 

I’d continued actively recruiting throughout the winter and into spring. Then in late March, after we’d been eliminated from the CIT Tournament and he’d been released from jail, Coach V made home visits to 4 recruits. Two of the four expressed interest in coming to Eastern Washington next year. We had another recruit who was also highly interested. These 3 (a C, a SF, and a PG) were all ranked in the Top 100 in the nation. There were also some lower ranked recruits who were highly interested, but I was pretty sure Coach V would choose from amongst the 3 in the Top 100. 

Coach V and I had a lengthy discussion about the 3 players that were highest on our list. Any one of these would likely to be a starter on our team next year, or at least give us much greater depth. We could wait until early April when Coach V could made another series of home visits, but we finally decided to offer the scholarship to the 7’0” center now. If he didn’t accept, we then would offer the scholarship to another recruit in April.

In mid-April our scholarship offer was accepted. Here’s the recruits we landed this year:

PF Byron Crawford, 6-7 HS Sr, Boise, Idaho, 3.0 GPA, 1040 SAT. 17.8 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.4 spg, 2.7 bpg. Byron has a great inside shot and is a high scorer. He’s also a strong rebounder. Defensively he is an excellent shot blocker. Although he’s a very talented player he could work harder and has had a few attitude and discipline problems, but he rarely misses practices. He had a decent, if unspectacular, showing at the Las Vegas Revue. He’s ranked #51 nationally and has an overall rating of B.

C Colin Goode, 7-0 JC So, Thomasville, Georgia, 2.1 GPA. 16.5 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 4.1 apg, 2.1 spg, 2.2 bpg. Colin has an excellent inside shot and is a strong scorer. He’s an outstanding rebounder and is very strong defensively. He’s a hard working kid. He’s primarily a post player. He’s ranked #58 nationally and has an overall rating of A.

SG Danya Lawson, 6-4 HS Sr, Battle Ground, Washington, 2.8 GPA, 1050 SAT. 16.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 3.2 apg, 2.1 spg, 2.2 bpg. Danya has a great outside shot, a very good inside shot, is an excellent free throw shooter, and is a strong scorer. He’s a very good ball handler. He’s a talented player but could work harder and has some attitude and discipline problems, but rarely misses practices. He was in the Top 25 at the Las Vegas Revue. He’s ranked #481 nationally and has an over rating of B.

PG Darryl Bailey, 6-1 JC So, Pe Ell, Washington, 2.7 GPA. 15.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 5.9 apg, 2.5 spg, 0.3 bpg. Darryl has a great outside shot. He is an outstanding passer and ball handler which was the primary reason we chose him. He needs to work on his defense. He has a tremendous work ethic. While he’s not a leader, he doesn’t cause problems. He’s rated #561 nationally and has an overall rating of C.

[PointGuard 70]

Nancy Parker, Athletic Department Secretary

 

I like to keep track of what athletes do after graduating from Eastern Washington. There were 6 graduating seniors on this season’s basketball team:

C JOSEPH PALMER: He is from nearby Pullman, Washington. Joseph has been accepted into a graduate program in political science at the University of Iowa. Christine Rozniak offered to provide Joseph with some pointers in practical politics (whatever she means by THAT), but I steered him clear of her clutches.

PG ROBBIE TAFLINGER: He’s from the other side of the state in Tacoma, Washington. Robbie plans to head back to Tacoma to help his parents with their digital arts business. He was a close friend of Don Watson, who transferred last year to the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma (and became a solid player of their team averaging 14.6 ppg and 7.3 rpg as a sophomore), and the two plan to share an apartment in Tacoma. Robbie plans to be a player-coach for the Tacoma Totems, an adult men’s team in the Puget Sound Basketball League.

SG BRIAN ROBISCH: He hails from Eatonville, Washington, a small town on the west side of the Cascade Mountains. Brian has a mid-management job lined up with the city of Yakima, Washington in their planning department. This summer Brian will be marrying Joan Therriault, who also graduated from EWU this year.

SF DELAWN WEST: He’s from Washougal, Washington, a small town across the Columbia River from Portland. Oregon. Delawn is going to England this summer to explore the country and its history, then hopes to find a teaching job there.

C ODIE JOSEPH: He is from nearby Spokane, Washington. Odie will be entering a master’s program at Washington State University in chemistry after spending this summer in an internship program for Dow Chemical.

C MICHAEL TAYLOR: He is from Ocean Shores, Washington, a tourist town on the Pacific Coast of the state. Michael will be an assistant basketball coach at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, a Division II team. He also hopes to take some graduate level courses there.

I’m always so proud of our players, not matter which sport it is. It’s good to see all 6 of these men heading on to new challenges. Since Coach Vandergard insists upon his players doing well academically, it’s not surprising to see them prepared to do well in the future. The last head basketball coach couldn’t take care of himself, let alone his players.

[PointGuard 70]

Jamal Smith, 1st Asst Coach

 

My contract expires next year. Coach V met with me and told me he and Swede appreciated the job I have done here at Eastern Washington and wanted to extend my contract. I’d already talked this over with my wife and we’d decided that next year might be the right time to strike out and see if there were any head coaching jobs I could get. While I’d never really considered that before, Coach V has given me responsibilities that exceeded my expectations and allowed me to be involved in all aspects of working with the team. So before Coach V could pass along the monetary offer for the extension he and Swede had discussed, I let him know that while I liked working here and for him and felt that I’d been given some good opportunities here, I wanted to leave my options open to go after a head coaching job. Coach V immediately said that he thought I was ready for that and would be a great head coach. He said if I decided to go after a head coaching job next year, he’d give me the highest of recommendations. Coach V said that if I changed my mind and wanted to stay on his staff after this coming year, he’d be extremely happy to continue working with me.

As I left, my stomach was turning and I was hoping I had made the right decision by turning down the extension.

[PointGuard 70]

Torbern “Swede” Olaffson, Athletic Director

 

Kauai is great. But there were some work-related things that I’d planned to do before Kate-girl and Kelli kidnapped me to this lush island…and some of those things just couldn’t wait.

One was to confer with Bret Vandergard about the team’s past and forthcoming seasons and to hopefully keep him from looking to jump ship to another head coaching job next year. So I called Bret. I told him I liked the recruits he has added, particularly the 7-0 center and the play-maker point guard. I set somewhat higher goals for next year, but nothing that should create too much pressure. He has enough on his mind as it is. He wanted an upgrade in facilities. While I’d like to accommodate him, with the censure by the NCAA, even though it was unofficial, there is no way the Board of Regents will approve that type of request. So we’ll just have to live with our somewhat tired facilities for at least another year. He said he’s looking forward to taking the Eagles the next step of their upward journey, so that relieved my mind.

Kelli's telling me it's time to leave for the luau.

[PointGuard 70]

Nancy Parker, Athletic Department secretary

 

Finally Coach Vandergard took a well-deserved vacation after the conclusion of the tumultuous 2014-2015 season. He’s gone for a week away at an “undisclosed location”.

Swede asked me to call Meaghan Kriley and thank her for all her help. Strange, her voice mail says she is on vacation also.

Hmmmmm. 

[PointGuard 70]

2015-2016 Season

 

Potato-Pickin’-Paul, “Eagle Flight” blog

During the recent season the Eastern Washington basketball program continued to gain strength and the team became more successful.  But throughout the season allegations abounded about various purported scandals (none of which were proven) as well as the arrest of the university’s president, athletic director and head basketball coach (followed by their subsequent releases after charges were not only unproven but dropped in their entirety).  Little Cheney, Washington became the 21st century equivalent of Peyton Place.  

 

Will the 2015-2016 season result in continued improvement of the program together with muting of the turbulence surrounding it? Only time will tell. Coach Bret Vandergard steadfastly refuses to discuss non-basketball issues, but regularly expresses excitement about the team’s on-the-court promise.

[PointGuard 70]

Jamal Smith, 1st Asst Coach

 

This year we will have 4 scholarships to fill. In preparation for recruiting, we purchase the Basic editions of the National Report and the Western Report. This year we will travel to the Indy Elite Camp and the Las Vegas Revue.

Then at the beginning of June Ervin Smith advises he will be transferring. We’re very disappointed because as a freshman, he began developing his skills very well toward the end of the year and Coach V was gradually increasing his playing time in anticipation that he would contest for to be a starter on this year’s squad at SF. But we all realized that he never meshed well with his teammates. His personality was such that he just never really got along with them. His departure will make the SF position weaker.

Coach V said he will look over this year’s transfers, but unless there is someone that we just can’t pass up, he’s more likely to just get a walk-on this year and have a 5th scholarship to offer to recruits.

We contact several transfer players and then make an offer to a sophomore SF who played for Hofstra last year. He accepts our offer:

SF Derrick Reyes, 6-6 So, Ravena, New York, 2.6 GPA. 9.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 1.1 apg, 0.9 spg, 0.0 bpg. Of course, he will have to sit out this season, but will have 3 years of eligibility left when he begins playing for us the 2016-2017 season.

Ervin Smith transfers to UCLA. Coach Vandergard called him to congratulate him and wish him well with the Bruins.

14 players on our watch/call list participated in the Indy Elite Camp and 32 participated in the Las Vegas Revue. So the camps helped us assess their capabilities and also get to know them a little. Our attendance kindled the interest of a few of the camp participants in EWU.

We got our first verbal acceptance of a scholarship in late September:

SG Anthony Alston, 6-1 HS Sr, Tucson, Arizona, 2.3 GPA. He’s an excellent outside shooter and scorer. He plays tenacious defense and is very athletic. He was in the Top 25 at the Las Vegas Revue. Ranked #32 in the nation with an overall A rating. Now, hopefully he can just get a high enough SAT to qualify.

No other recruits gave us verbals this fall, so we will continue to attempt to build interest in a number of recruits throughout the winter so we can get the rest of the signings in the spring.

[PointGuard 70]

Austin Nathaniel, 2nd Asst Coach

 

Positional Battles

As I work with the squad in practice this fall, I’m getting more and more excited. I think the skill level is better this year than last. And there should be some good competition for starting roles and playing time.

POINT GUARD:

Certainly Tim Dove has the edge since he’s got two years of experience with us. I think he’s going to be a better playmaker this year and his ball handling and passing skills are improving which should result in not only more assists, but more importantly, less turnovers. His defensive skills are improving also.

Incoming JC transfer Darryl Bailey has a lot of potential, but needs some to develop his skills to be able to challenge Dove for a starting role. Bailey is a more aggressive shooter so could give us a quick infusion of offense coming off the bench.

Harvey Manning is a senior walk-on. He’s got good ball handling and passing skills so could come in and stabilize play for us.

SHOOTING GUARD:

Shawn Jackson’s experience gives him the initial edge. He seems to becoming a more aggressive shooter, more willing to put up a shot than instead of passing up shot opportunities as he did the last two years. 
Will Davis, who redshirted last year, is likely to challenge Jackson for a starting role. He’s matured and his skill levels have improved significantly. He may be a stronger rebounder than Jackson.

Freshman Danya Lawson has good potential, but needs to hone his skills and gain some experience. He’s probably the most aggressive shooter of our SG’s though and could provide some instant offense coming off the bench.

SMALL FORWARD:

Joe Blackwell will like start again for us. He has the most developed set of skills and his rebounding has improved from last year.

Walk-on Travis Dawson has much the same skills as Blackwell. He showed last year that he has a sweet shot and he is likely to get more playing time this year.

Derrick Reyes transferred this year so can’t suit up. But I’m looking forward to working with him next season since his skills are already well developed and he has even greater potential.

POWER FORWARD:

Terence Hillier continues to improve and is likely to be the starter this year. His rebounding continues to get better every year and he plays some rugged defense. His scoring remains a big question mark though.

Brian Dearman has a better outside shot and similar skills to Hillier so could challenge for a starting role or be a solid reserve.

Freshman Byron Crawford bring a lot of potential and a lot of attitude. Hopefully he can fit in well with the team because he should be a key player for us in the future as he gains experience.

CENTER:

Cory Davis seems even stronger than he was last year and probably will benefit from shifting from PF to his more natural center position. A strong rebounder and good defender with better than average ball handling and passing skills.

The backup role will be split between Odie Joseph and JC transfer Colin Goode. Joseph handles the boards well and provides some solid defense. He needs to be more aggressive offensively though. Goode’s height (7-0) will be a welcome asset and he has a nose for the basket so could come in and give us some quick offense. Otherwise he is a step behind Davis and Joseph in development of his skills though.

If Dove, Jackson, Blackwell and Davis can hold off their challengers for starting roles that means we will have 4 starters back this year.

[PointGuard 70]

...and in the news

 

Over the summer Tony Carpelli plead guilty to attempted kidnapping. rackateering. and was able to plea bargain his murder charge down to accessory to murder. He receives 10 years imprisonment as a sentence.

Former Cheney police chief Matt Hauser pleads guilty to the federal charges of of obstuction of justice and destruction of evidence. All other charges are dropped and Hauser receives 18 months in federal prison.

Fred Partington goes to trial and is found guilty on federal charges of mail fraud and domestic terrorism. He receives a sentence of 12 years.

 

[Copied from post by CoachC in Wolverine Studios forum]

[PointGuard 70]

Odds and ends

 

 

After the St. Patrick's day parade, Jim Rome is so impressed with his nation's capital that he begins plans for building a new vacation home there.

Christine Rozniak announces her desire to assume the recently vacated US rep position of the late Charlie "Feelgood" Osgood.

[PointGuard 70]

Pre-Conference Schedule

 

Scheduling continues to be difficult. Bret left it all up to me this year. This season we have 6 away games (against Boise St., Columbia, Western Kentucky, Furman, Georgetown and Nicholls St.) and 5 home games (against Old Dominion, Holy Cross, Brigham Young, Milwaukee, and Houston) before starting Big Sky play.

Bret took it astride although he did comment that this makes the 3rd straight year where we play more away games than at home. I was really hoping to shift that unbalance this year, but most programs either won't schedule us or will only do so if we play in their gyms.

[PointGuard 70]

Christine Rozniak’s machinations

 

Christine calls Lieutenant Governor Boswell Havrisham’s office:

Hello Boz, it’s been a while since we (long pause), errrr....”talked”. That was quite an “in depth” conversation last winter! I hope you found Cheney to be a (pause) “relief” to you challenging duties.

But all that aside, as if we would ever want to put it aside, let me get right to the point of my call. Congressman “Feelgood” Osgood’s decision to retire early after his unfortunate comments about wanting to make Canada a county of the state of Washington mean someone has to be appointed to fill his seat (and his subsequent death was even more unfortunate, but there are always "consequences"). I’m sure our time together in Cheney showed you the many talents I possess and how I’m the one for that job. I know you have aspirations to run for Governor in the next election so I’m sure that having me in your corner would be better than having a little birdie suggest to the media that they look into your activities in Cheney. I DO have your support, don’t I?

Oh, Boz, you don’t know how much that pleases me.

[PointGuard 70]

Governor Steven Ingraham

 

(Lt. Governor Boswell Havrisham meets with him in the governor's office)

Boz! You’ve got to be kidding! You REALLY want me to appoint Christine Rozniak to the U.S. House of Representatives seat?

I absolutely KNOW she’s a member of our party. Sometimes we’re stuck with whoever joins. But you KNOW that she is a word that rhymes with “witch”.

Of course I want to be the next Senator from the great state of Washington.

Uhhhh, what’s that you say? WHAT does she have that can be used against me? 

How could she know that? I thought only YOU knew about THAT.

Oh my god, I can’t send you anywhere!

I’ll think about it, but I’m not making any commitments, Boz. That woman is the reincarnation of Machiavelli.

[PointGuard 70]

Spokane Spokesman-Review Sports Section Article

 

Big Sky Hoops Prognostications

The results of the Big Sky Conference Media Poll were announced earlier today. Prognostications by the media are notoriously wrong, but the media continues to conduct this poll every year. 

After finishing atop the conference standings last year, the Eastern Washington Eagles got little love from the media. The Eagles were picked to finish 4th this season by the media, despite returning 4 starters. Picked to finish ahead of the Eagles this year were: Northern Colorado, Sacramento State, and North Dakota. Of the top 3 picks, only North Dakota had a winning record last season.

Coach Bret Vandergard said, “I expect the competition within the Big Sky to be tougher this year. Most schools have improved the quality of their squads, so being picked to finish 4th isn’t surprising. As underdogs, we will just have to player harder and smarter. The conference is likely to be very competitive from top to bottom.”

Many in the media likely felt the loss of SF Ervin Smith, who transferred to UCLA, left a big hole in the middle of the lineup. Additionally, Terence Hillier who likely will be starting at PF, has yet to prove he can score with any consistency.

Meanwhile, Eastern Washington has been training hard and Vandergard stated, “I’m optimistic that our team this year can compete well against anyone on our schedule. We had good recruiting results last year. Even though those players are unlikely to start at the beginning of the year, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them challenge for starting roles as the season progresses and also provide some quality court time for us whether they are starters or reserves. Our returning players have improved as well and their experience playing together hopefully will reduce turnovers and strengthen our defense, our two most notable weaknesses last season.”

The Big Sky media expect the Big Sky standings this season to be as follows:

1. Northern Colorado
2. Sacramento State
3. North Dakota
4. Eastern Washington
5. Montana
6. Idaho State
7. Southern Utah
8. Idaho
9. Weber State
10. Portland State
11. Montana State

Eastern Washington opens their non-conference schedule this Tuesday at Boise State. Their conference schedule kicks off December 27 when they host North Dakota.

[PointGuard 70]

Meaghan Kriley, Spokane Spokesman-Review Columnist

 

I’ve been investigating Christine Rozniak. Things are definitely sketchy since she covers her tracks well and uses others to implement her nefarious deeds. So thus far I don’t have enough facts to write a story for the paper.

But here are some things that she seems to be behind:

1. The Board of Regents for Washington universities is looking closely for any possible wrong-doing by staff at Eastern Washington University. In particular, it seems that a yet unknown staff member with possible ties to Christine Rozniak has been serving as the Regents’ inside mole and has been steering their investigation toward President Clement Morgan, AD Torbern Olaffson, and Coach Bret Vandergard, even though all three were wrongly detained and all charges against each of these gentlemen have been dropped by authorities and they have been reinstated to their positions.

2. Reid Doremeier, often viewed as a “weasel” on the Cheney City Council and a dupe of Christine Rozniak, instigated the ousting of Cheney Mayor Alan Allen, a long-time foe of Rozniak. It appears that in return for Doremeier’s efforts, Christine Rozniak will sponsor and support his attempt to be appointed to the vacant mayorship.

3. Not only did Christine Rozniak get her brother, Herschel Rozniak, promoted to Chief of Police (after the arrest of Chief of Police Matt Hauser), there seems to be a purge of police officers (such as Detective Bernie Miller) who Christine Rozniak is purported to view as not vigorously pursuing Morgan, Olaffson, and Vandegard at EWU.

4. Christine Rozniak has started the “Clean Up Cheney” committee, a group of do-gooder residents who are being prompted to get rid of what Rozniak alleges is a festering wound of key people who are harming Cheney’s “stellar reputation”.

5. The “Clean Up Cheney” committee has expanded its purview to the media and is asking KSPK Radio to fire Corky Branigan for his suspicious disappearance for which he has not made public his reason(s).

6. Nancy Parker has advised me that someone is spreading rumors about her in an attempt to get her fired from her EWU athletic department position. While she does not know for sure, she suspects that Christine Rozniak is behind this effort.

7. I’ve learned that Lieutenant Governor Boswell Havrisham is actively campaigning to get Christine Rozniak appointed to the abandoned Congressional seat. While at face value there is nothing wrong with this, it is surprising since there are many more qualified persons for this important position. One has to wonder..."why"?

[PointGuard 70]

Potato-Pickin’-Paul, “Eagle Flight” blog

 

Game #1, Nov. 15, 2015: Eastern Washington Eagles (0-0) at Boise State Broncos (0-0)

Hey Eagles fans! Are you ready for another exciting basketball season?

Tonight the Eagles take travel to Boise, Idaho. Boise State provides a big challenge to the Eagles as they open their season. Not only is this a road game, but the Broncos fashioned a 20-10 record last year, finished tied for 2nd in the tough Mountain West Conference, and made it to the 2nd round of the NIT.

Eastern Washington’s starters for the season opener will be: PG-6’1” Jr Tim Dove; SG-6’4” Jr Shawn Jackson; SF-6’3” Sr Joe Blackwell; PF-6-7” Sr Terence Hillier; C-6’9” Jr Cory Davis.

EWU broke out on top 11-0, shooting well and taking advantage of Broncos’ turnovers. The Eagles played tough defense the entire first half holding Boise State’s shooting to 33% while forcing 11 turnovers by the Broncos. The Eagles also dominated the boards 16-8 and hit 48% of their FG attempts. That allowed Eastern Washington to leave the court at the end of the half with a 33-21 lead. Cory Davis and Danya Lawson both scored 8 points for EWU. 

Boise State came out of the locker room fired up and hit two quick 3’s to cut the lead to 6 points. The Eagles came back to re-establish their lead. The Broncos rallied again and midway through the 2nd half, they got within 4 points. But EWU was equal to the challenge and re-established their double digit lead and carried a solid lead all the way to the final buzzer to gain a big road victory. The Eagles won the game by out-shooting the Broncos 50% to 39% and out-rebounding Boise State 30-18. Eastern Washington’s staunch defense was also exemplified by their forcing the Broncos to make 19 turnovers, although the team stat became a negative due to the Eagles making 20 turnovers themselves.

Final Score: Eastern Washington (1-0)-62, Boise State-54.

Leading players for Eastern Washington: C Cory Davis-12 pts, 4 reb, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks; PG Tim Dove-12 pts, 2 reb; SG Danya Lawson-10 pts, 1 reb, 1 steal.

Player of the Game: C Cory Davis-12 pts, 4 reb, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks.

[PointGuard 70]

Bret's Home

 

Bret returns back home from Idaho after the season opener to find that someone has broken in and the place is ransacked, but nothing of value appears to be missing.

 

[Copied from post by CoachC in Wolverine Studios forum]

[PointGuard 70]

Excerpts from KSPK radio play-by-play

 

Game #2, Nov. 18, 2015: Eastern Washington Eagles (1-0) vs Columbia Lions (0-1)

Columbia’s center Greg Davis scored 18 points in the Lions first game this year.
*****
Joe Blackwell receives the crosscourt pass from Shawn Jackson. Blackwell fakes a drive to the basket but shoots it across the key to Cory Davis. Davis steps back and puts up a 7 foot jumper that drops in to draw first blood. There was a whistle. Columbia’s Greg Davis fouled Cory Davis on the shot. Cory steps to the line and drills the freebie putting the Eagles up 3-0.
*****
The pass from Dove goes inside to Goode near the baseline. Goode muscles his way toward the basket, then pulls up to bank in a short shot just over the fingertips of the defender. It’s good and that ties the game at 27-27 with 3:21 to go in the half. 
*****
The refs call yet another foul on the Eagles. This one is Colin Goode. That will send Tahid to the line for two shots. Vandergard is working the refs hard. Andre Tahid sinks the pair and the Lions go back on top 31-29.
*****
The half comes to an end with Eastern Washington nursing a slim 33-31 lead. Columbia scored 6 more points at the line, but the Eagles were able to score 16 fast break points as they made the most of Columbia’s turnovers. Danya Lawson came off the bench to score 6 points which was high for EWU.
*****
Danya Lawson brings the ball into the forecourt. He sends it into Darryl Bailey near the key. Bailey puts up a shot over Eric Yeaton and is fouled. Oh! Bailey’s shot bounced off the rim, up against the back board and down into the hoop. Bailey goes to the line with the chance to convert a 3-point play. Bailey’s free throw glides through the silks to make the score 51-43 in favor of EWU with 13 minutes to play. 
*****
Dove steals the pass, pushes quickly up to Goode who drives to the basket for a thundering dunk. He was fouled on the shot. Colin Goode dribbles 3 times, spins the ball before putting up the shot and its in to give Goode 15 points and put the Eagles ahead 71-59 with 5-1/2 minutes left in the game. 
*****
That’s it. The buzzer sounds and the Eagles pick up their second straight win the road. Eastern Washington hit 59% of their shots and held Columbia’s shooting to 40%. Even though the Eagles turned the ball over 16 times as compared to the Lions 12 turnovers, Eastern Washington controlled the boards to the tune of 28-21. 

Final Score: Eastern Washington (2-0)-81, Columbia-65.

Eastern Washington’s leading players: C Colin Goode-15 pts, 2 reb; SG Shawn Jackson-12 pts, 4 reb, 2 assists; PG Tim Dove-11 pts, 3 reb, 5 assists, 5 steals; C Cory Davis-9 pts, 5 reb, 2 assists, 2 steals; SG Danya Lawson-9 pts, 1 reb, 1 assist.

Player of the Game: PG Tim Dove-11 pts, 3 reb, 5 assists, 5 steals.

Brian Dearman sprained his toe in the game and will miss our next game.

[PointGuard 70]

Excerpts from Play-by-Play Broadcast by Radio Station KSPK

 

Game #3, Nov. 22, 2015: Eastern Washington Eagles (2-0) at Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (2-1)

Welcome to KSPK’s coverage of Eastern Washington’s 3rd game of the season against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. I’m Kyle Broward. Broadcasting this game along with me is Dusty Frick. Tonight’s game is brought to you by the good folks at Inland Empire Bank and Springfield Ford. The skies over Bowling Green opened for a continuous downpour throughout today, creating some flooding conditions in the area and reducing tonight’s crowd at Diddle Arena.
*****
The Hilltoppers have played all 3 of their games thus far on the road, winning 2 of them. PG Ron Church is averaging 15.0 ppg and hitting a high percentage of his shots. The Eagles will need to figure out a way to neutralize him for tonight’s game. The Eagles will be hard-pressed to remain unbeaten playing on the road against the highly favored Hilltoppers.
*****
Starting for the Eastern Washington Eagles tonight: 6 ft 1 inch junior Tim Dove at point guard. Dove is averaging 11.5 ppg. 6 ft 4 inch junior Shawn Jackson will start at shooting guard. He’s averaging 7.0 ppg. At small forward will be 6 ft 3 inch senior Joe Blackwell who’s scoring 4.0 ppg but who surprisingly leads the Eagles in rebounding with 6.0 boards per game. Coach Vandergard has shaken up his interior and will start 6 ft 9 inch junior Cory Davis at power forward rather than center tonight. Davis is averaging 10.5 ppg. At center, Vandergard will give the 7 ft junior college transfer, Colin Goode his first start wearing the red and white of EWU. Goode has averaged 10.0 ppg coming off the bench thus far. That means Terence Hillier, who has been the Eagles starting power forward will be on the bench at the beginning of the game. Power forward Brian Dearman did not accompany the team to Kentucky and will miss tonight’s game with a sprained toe.
*****
Colin Goode takes a pass inside, moves to the basket and puts it up and over the head of the defender to score the Eagles first points with 18:20 remaining and cutting the Hilltoppers’ lead to 6-2. 
*****
The Hilltoppers’ B.J. Carey is called for the foul on the shot. That will send Shawn Jackson to the line for the Eagles with 15:50 to play in the half. We have a time out. After the time out, Coach Vandergard replaces Joe Blackwell with Travis Dawson at small forward. Vandergard seems to be chewing on Blackwell who has made 3 of the Eagles 5 turnovers thus far. Shawn Jackson sinks both free throws to make it 12-6 in favor of Western Kentucky.
*****
The foul on Goode is his 2nd and will send the Eagles’ leading scorer to the bench with 6 points after just 5-1/2 minutes of play. 
*****
Jackson drives to the basket, flips it to Cory Davis to the left of the hoop. Davis’ shot rims out but Davis grabs the rebounds and muscles it back up and in cutting the Hilltoppers’ lead to 26-14 at the 10:15 mark. Nice play by Jackson and good effort by Davis!
*****
With just under 9 minutes to go in the first half, Cory Davis is charged with his 2nd personal and will join Colin Goode on the Eagles’ bench. 
*****
Shawn Jackson is fouled on the dribble and will go to the line for a 1-and-1. His first shot rims around but drops through. His second effort glides through cleanly and pulls Eastern Washington to within 5 at 27-22 with 7:06 on the clock.
*****
For the second straight possession Harvey Manning is fouled and will go to the line for 2 more shots. He drops both in again and the score is now 27-26 as the Eagles have silenced the crowd with just over 5 minutes left in the half.
*****
Byron Crawford drills a 3 with 3:40 to go that ties the game at 29-29.
Crawford gets the ball down deep on the baseline. He turns and fakes a drive but pulls up for the 8 foot jumper that falls putting EWU ahead for the first time in the game at 33-31 with the 2:50 mark. That’s 8 points for Crawford.
*****
With 2 minutes on the clock, the Eagles call a time out. Vandergard continues to play a very long bench, substituting frequently and getting good production from his bench. Jackson inbounds to Dove. Dove works around the pick by Danya Lawson, cutting to the outside. He’s free for a 12 foot jumper. The shot is up and in! 35-34 in favor of Eastern Washington.
*****
At halftime Eastern Washington is up by a score of 37-35. While the Eagles have turned the ball over 9 times to Western Kentucky’s 6 turnovers, EWU has owned the boards to the tune of 21-8. That’s led to 11 second chance points by the Eagles whereas the Hilltoppers have no second chance points. Both teams have hit over 50% of their FG attempts. Bryon Crawford leads Eastern Washington’s scoring with 8 points but Odie Joseph has 7 and Colin Goode and Shawn Jackson both have 6. For Western Kentucky, shooting guard B.J. Carey leads all scorers with 14 points. The Eagles have held Ron Church to just one point.
*****
It’s Eagles’ ball to start the 2nd half. Dove works the ball over to Cory Davis on the right side of the key. Davis fires the ball across court to Blackwell on the wing. Blackwell is free for a 3 that drops cleanly through the hoop to make the score 40-35.
*****
The pass comes back to Tim Dove at the head of the key. Dove puts up a long 3 point attempt. It’s good! The Eagles lead 53-43 with 15:18 to play.
*****
Both teams have continued to shoot well, but Eastern Washington has out-hustled the Hilltoppers early in the 2nd half. Will Davis takes a pass from Travis Dawson. Davis works the ball along the right side of the key, turns and shoots. He’s fouled on the shot and will go to the line for 2 shots. Davis cans both shots to give EWU a 62-50 advantage with 13 minutes to go.
*****
Jackson’s pass is intercepted. The Hilltoppers drive down court, but the Eagles fall back to prevent a quick score. The ball is dropped inside to Ballinger who puts up a shot. It fails to drop but he’s fouled by Cory Davis. He misses the first but makes the 2nd free throw. The Eagles’ lead is cut to 65-60 with 8:48 remaining.
*****
On the ensuing possession, Jackson swings the ball over to Dawson. But the pass is intercepted by Starzee Brown who drives the length of the court for a driving dunk and now the Eagles lead by just 3.
*****
Vandergard calls a time out and brings in Will Davis to replace Jackson. On the inbounds pass, Tim Dove drives around Will Davis and puts up a shot. The shot is off the rim but he was fouled. Dove hits both charity shots to make the score 67-62 with 8:13 on the clock.
*****
Ballinger hits a put-back to tie the score at 69-69. The Eagles double digit lead has totally evaporated with 7-1/2 minutes to go.
*****
Tim Dove drives the lane. He stops and puts up a shot from 5 feet that is off the front of the rim. The ball comes right back to him and he puts up another shot that drops to put the Eagles on top 81-76 with 4:05 left.
*****
Melson’s 12 footer from inside the key drops and the game is tied at 81-81 with 3:09 on the clock.
*****
Shawn Jackson’s pass is again intercepted. Julius Dickel drives down court for a thunderous dunk to put Western Kentucky on top 83-81 with just 2:42 remaining.
*****
EWU calls another time out and Vandergard wants to settle down his team. Jackson is again sat down on the bench. On the inbounds play, Tim Dove cuts around the head of the key and is fouled on the dribble. Dove sinks both shots to make it 83-83 with 2:29 left.
*****
That’s the 4th straight turnover by EWU. The Hilltoppers have converted on all four and now lead 89-83. The Eagles now need some magic with just 1:20 to go.
*****
Blackwell is fouled and makes both shots cutting the lead to 89-85 with 53 seconds remaining.
*****
EWU fouls. The Hilltoppers miss the front end of the 1-and-1. EWU pulls down the rebound and Dove brings the ball quickly up court. He pulls up at the head of the key but is covered. He slings it over to Will Davis who puts up a 3 that falls cutting the lead to 89-88 with 34 seconds to go.
*****
Dove fouls Church with 31 seconds on the clock. Church misses both shots and Goode rebounds. EWU has no time outs remaining. The Eagles work the ball around deliberately. Blackwell into Goode who cannot get free. He sends it back out to Dove who cuts around Bailey. Church tries maintain contact with Dove but fouls him. Dove goes to the line for 2 shots with 16 seconds left. Dove toes the line, puts up his first shot and it drops through to tie the score. The crowd is going wild, but Dove ignores the frenzy and puts the 2nd shot cleanly through as well and the Eagles regain the lead at 90-89.
*****
The Eagles press, but Western Kentucky is able to get it across the center line. Oh! The refs call a questionable foul on Tim Dove as he tries to check Ron Church. Coach Vandergard is working the refs hard after that call. That will give Church two shots with 10 seconds left. Church sinks both shots giving the Hilltoppers a 91-90 lead.
***** 
Dove brings the ball up court, passes to Davis but he can’t get off the shot. He bounce passes to Byron Crawford who takes it at the foul line. Crawford puts up a shot but it hits the back of the rim. Western Kentucky grabs the rebound and the buzzer sounds.
*****
Post-game interview of Coach Vandergard by Dusty Frick:

DF: Tough loss, Coach.
BV: We did a lot of good things tonight, but yes losing that way was a heartbreaker for the entire team. I was proud of the way we came back in the first half to erase a big Western Kentucky lead and take a slim lead to the locker room. And then we played exceptionally well in the early stages of the 2nd half and opened a 12 point lead. But we couldn’t shut the door.
DF: What caused the turnaround?
BV: We just got sloppy and didn’t protect the ball. You can’t make 19 turnovers. But you have to give credit to Western Kentucky. They shot the lights out in the 2nd half. They hit 66% of their shots for the entire game, so even though we dropped in 58% of ours, we just couldn’t stop them.
DF: Were you happy with how Colin Goode did in his first start?
BV: Colin played very well, even though he was in foul trouble for most of the game. But I also was impressed with how Will Davis, Byron Crawford, Odie Joseph, and Harvey Manning did coming off the bench. They scored a combined 35 points. And after being held scoreless in the first half, Tim Dove came back to drop in 17 second half points and nearly pulled out the game for us.
DF: Coach, what caused you to play your entire bench so extensively tonight?
BV: Well, some of that was the result of fouls and some due to our players not sufficiently protecting the ball, but mainly it was that I wanted to keep fresh legs on the court. We have a strong bench so I’m confident about putting anyone on the court.
DF: Coach, thanks for coming on with us after such a tough loss.
BV: It’s never easy to win on the road, but we gave it a good try tonight. Our players and staff will learn from it and hopefully it will make us stronger in our upcoming games.
DF: And now I’ll pass it back to Kyle for the game wrap-up.

Final Score: Western Kentucky-91, Eastern Washington (2-1)-90.

Leading players for Eastern Washington: PG Tim Dove-17 pts, 2 reb, 2 assists; C Colin Goode-16 pts, 5 reb, 1 block; PF Byron Crawford-11 pts, 7 reb, 3 assists, 1 steal; SF Will Davis-11 pts.

Player of the Game: Western Kentucky’s C Ray Melson-14 pts, 8 reb, 4 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks.

[PointGuard 70]

Austin Nathaniel, 2nd Asst Coach

 

Game #4, Nov. 25, 2015: Eastern Washington Eagles (2-1) at Furman Paladins (2-0)

We’re playing on the road yet again. What a way to start the season. I’m hopeful the guys are wearing down from all the travel.

Furman has played all their games at home. I think we match up pretty well against them, but they’ve had a good inside-outside game with SG Mario Pointer averaging 14.5 ppg and their two interior players, C Luke McKnight and PF Andy West combining for 27.0 ppg.

Coach V is starting Colin Goode again at center and has benched Shawn Jackson after his error-prone last game and instead is giving Will Davis his first start at SG.

The refs roughed us up early which allowed Furman to take a 10-6 lead. We then fell behind by as much as 10 points midway through the half. But we finally began applying some defense, whittled away their lead, and then pulled ahead by 4 points with 2 minutes left in the half. The Paladins rallied to take a 42-40 lead to the locker room. Shawn Jackson and Joe Blackwell both scored 8 points to lead us offensively. Furman had 3 players in double figures, SG Mario Pointer with 13, PG Chrishan West with 11, and C Luke McKnight with 10.

We held a small lead through the early stages of the 2nd half and then went ahead 76-63 with 6-1/2 minutes to play as Danya Lawson came off the bench to torch the net. Furman hit some 3’s in the last minute to narrow our lead but we never were in serious trouble.

While we got to the line 12 fewer times and scored 9 less points on free throws than Furman, we made up for it by being +3 in rebounds, +1 in turnovers, and hitting 12 of 18 three point shots.

Besides the break-out game for Danya Lawson, I was please by how Shawn Jackson responded to his benching by hitting some big shots. Shawn has probably won his starter position, although Danya is making a statement about his shooting prowess.

Final Score: Eastern Washington (3-1)—91, Furman—87.

Eastern Washington’s leading players: Danya Lawson-20 pts (5 of 7 three’s), 3 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal; SG Shawn Jackson-15 pts, 1 assist, 1 steal; SF Joe Blackwell-13 pts, 1 reb, 1 steal; PG Darryl Bailey-13 pts, 1 reb, 1 assist; PG Tim Dove-9 pts, 6 assists, 1 reb, 2 steals; C Odie Joseph-8 pts, 3 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal.

Player of the Game: SG Danya Lawson-20 pts, 3 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal.

Furman’s SG Mario Pointer hit 10 of 11 from the field (including all 6 of his 3’s) and scored 32 points. C Luke McKnight scored 24 points and hauled down 8 rebounds.

Travis Dawson sustained a hip injury, but our trainer feels he will be ready for our next game.

[PointGuard 70]

Spokane Spokesman-Review Sports Column

 

Game #5, Nov. 29, 2015: Eastern Washington Eagles (3-1) at Georgetown Hoyas (2-1)

Georgetown used Eastern Washington turnovers to jump out to an 8-0 lead and eventually built their lead to 18 points before Danya Lawson came off the bench to rally the Eagles and pull them to within 4 points. Georgetown used a late spurt to move out to a 45-35 halftime advantage. Lawson scored 13 points in the first half but star SF Mike Pangrazio dropped in 14 points for the Hoyas.

Georgetown’s offense caught fire in the 2nd half and the Hoyas steadily drew away from the out-manned Eagles. Following the game, Coach Bret Vandergard said, “We knew we were in for a tough game against a very talented team on their home court. But again our defense was porous and let us down.”

When asked about the play of Danya Lawson, Vandergard replied, “That’s the second straight game that Danya has come in and carried our offense. He’s got a great shooting eye. He’s impressing me more as the season progresses.”

The loss dropped the Eagles to 3-2. All of EWU’s games have been on the road, but 6 of their next 7 games will be on their home court.

Final Score: Georgetown—92, Eastern Washington (3-2)—67.

Leading players for Eastern Washington: SG Danya Lawson-24 pts, 2 reb; PF Cory Davis-10 pts, 3 reb.

Player of the Game: Georgetown’s SG Rodney Williams-15 pts, 3 reb, 6 assists, 3 steals, 1 block.