TDCB: Return to Eastern Washington

[klayman]

Continuing the story of sex, drugs, and basketball in Cheney, WA...uh...minus the sex and drugs.

The first year can be found here while it's still available.

Season 1 Recap: Despite inheriting a brutal team for my rookie coaching season, an easy schedule and poor conference opponents led to a 22-8 season, the programs first ever NCT appearance, an 11th seed in the South, and a first round NCT loss to Duke. With four seniors departing (including 3 starters), the Eagle faithful look to 5* recruit Roy Bailey to lead them back to the promised land.

[klayman]

Stats Dump

We finish the 2002-2003 season 23-9.
CRI
58th Eastern Washington .5267 CRI Value, 0.719 Win%, 301 Schedule Rank, .4627 Schedule Strength 55th IP Poll, 51 .400 Poll

Final IP Top 25 Poll

1.	Arizona 33-6

2.	Cincinnati 33-3

3.	Florida 33-6

4.	Connecticut 32-4

5.	Kansas 29-6

6.	Michigan State 29-7

7.	Kentucky 29-8

8.	Texas Tech 27-7

9.	Syracuse 27-6

10.	Georgia Tech 28-5

11.	Illinois 25-9

12.	Ohio State 27-6

13.	USC 26-10

14.	Virginia 27-10

15.	Mississippi State 25-8

16.	Stanford 25-10

17.	Temple 25-7

18.	Duke 23-11

19.	Wake Forest 26-8

20.	Indiana 23-10

21.	Providence 26-10

22.	Mississippi 24-11

23.	UCLA 23-13

24.	Fresno State 27-6

25.	Iowa 22-10

2002-2003 Eagles Final Roster

Name        Pos  G   MPG  PPG  RPG  APG  TOPG  SPG  BPG

Ben Cooper     SF 32  32.0 18.2  6.1  1.3  1.2   0.7  0.0

Kevin Cockle   SG 32  30.0 14.5  2.7  2.7   1.6   1.2  0.0

Hilton PiatowskiC 26  29.5  8.6  9.6  0.8   1.5   0.6  1.0

Rob Rein       PG 31  29.6  8.1  2.7  5.8   2.6   1.5  0.0

Josh Johnson   PF 29  30.2  7.7  2.9  0.6   1.3   0.7  0.3

Sharone Jones  PG 32  11.2  4.0  0.4  1.5   0.8   0.1  0.0

Lindsey Brown   C 28  16.2  3.9  4.0  0.6   0.8   0.5  0.5

Chevlier King  SF 24   8.3  3.7  0.7  0.2   0.4   0.1  0.0

Ezra Harthaway PG 26  12.7  3.1  1.1  2.4   1.1   0.4  0.0

Delvin Friend  PF 32  11.3  2.3  1.8  0.3   0.7   0.1  0.2

Lucas Cooper   SF 19   5.2  1.7  1.0  0.2   0.2   0.1  0.0

Jonathan Wesby PG  3   1.7  0.0  0.0  0.0   0.0   0.0  0.0

Jamal RichardsnSG  1   4.0  0.0  0.0  0.0   0.0   0.0  0.0

[klayman]

Departing Seniors

Ben Cooper. Cooper’s 18.2 PPG was a huge reason we made it to the NCT. Although I gave him the starting position by default, he made every effort to prove my initial evaluation of him wrong, His 28.7 PPG during the Big Sky Conference Tournament will forever be remembered by EWU fans.

Hilton Piatowski. Arguably the most talented player on the team, Piatowski’s true worth came to light when the Eagles went 3-3 in Big Sky Conference games with him out with an injury. He shot over 50% during his career at Eastern, and his great play pushed the Eagles into the 2003 NCT, and was rewarded by being named to the Big Sky All Conference team.

Rob Rein. Rein was the central figure in the Eagles offence, controlling the play when they went to a one guard set, or dictating the action from the motion offence. Calm and cool on the court, he set a season high mark of 21 points with 11-11 free throws vs Montana. His season 79.1 free throw % led the team.

Sharone Jones. Jones saw very little playing time in 2003. He scored a career high 12 points against San Francisco, and finished his collegiate career with a 3 point basket in the NCT against Duke.

No Eagles get drafted, which isn’t a surprise. I get offered 10 jobs during the off-season. Two of them, Oregon State, and Long Beach have higher prestige, but I’m sticking around for a while. My reputation is Established, which I hope helps me land some big time recruits this year.

[klayman]

We welcome in a new trainer, Ricky Hill. He has better conditioning at a lower cost for us.

Missouri grabs the top recruiting class of 2003, while runner up Arizona gets the 5th class. No surprise here, no Big Sky teams are in the top 20.

We stick with Sid Nyquist’s Hoopz Galore for our scouting service. We did land Roy Bailey with the service last year, and initial reports say they were pretty much on the money with him. Oh, plus the fact that we can’t afford any other service, kind of ties our hands

We settle on a little tougher non-conference schedule this year. Our recruiting class is listed as Average, and our composite talent level is listed as Below Average, both improvements from last year. So, a little tougher schedule won’t hurt any. Our fellow Big Sky Conference teams had awful freshman classes, except for Northern Arizona and Montana, but only Northern Arizona is expected to compete with us this year.

Eastern Washington Eagles Non-Conference Schedule

St. Francis (NY)
Arkansas LR
@ LSU
Lehigh
@ South Florida
Alcorn State
@ #2 Michigan State
Mercer
Wichita State
@ Loyola Maryland
Wagner
High Point
@ Southern Utah
Navy
Pepperdine

IP Top 25 Initial Poll

1. Arizona
2. Michigan State
3. Florida
4. Duke
5. Iowa State
6. Kansas
7. UCLA
8. Virginia
9. Illinois
10. Texas Tech
11. Connecticut
12. Kentucky
13. Cincinnati
14. Texas
15. Mississippi
16. USC
17. North Carolina
18. Providence
19. Boston College
20. Maryland
21. Wake Forest
22. Tennessee
23. Alabama
24. Wisconsin
25. California

[klayman]

Meet the 2003-2004 Eastern Washington Eagles

SG – Kevin Cockle. SR (6-3, 184) Cockle returns to the starting lineup this year after an impressive junior campaign. He played 32 games for the Eagles last year, collecting 14.5 PPG, 2.7 APG, and 61 +/- rating. He worked very hard in the offseason, and has vastly improved his shooting and passing game.

PG – Ezra Hathaway SO (6-2, 160) Hathaway had a difficult camp, and didn’t improve as much as the coaches would have liked. Still, we have very little options with guards this year, and Hathaway will get the starting spot. In 26 games, Hathaway grabbed 3.1 PPG, 2.4 APG, and 0.4 APG in just over 12 mins/game playing time, and was named to the Big Sky All-Freshmen team.

SF – Delvin Friend SR (6-7, 272) With Bailey committing last year and the departure of Cooper, Friend knew he would have to improve his skills if he wanted any playing time in his final year. He did just that, improving his offensive game greatly, and allowing the coaches to pencil him in as the starting small forward. His stats off the bench last year, 32 Games, 11.3 MPG, 2.3 PPG, 1.8 RPG.

C – Lindsey Brown SR (6-11, 243) Brown, used sparingly last year, worked hard during the offseason to capture the starting center spot. The best pure athlete on the team, Brown worked intensively on his defense and rebounding, and the coaches now feel confident in his basketball abilities.

PF – Roy Bailey FR (6-8, 242) Believe the hype. Bailey is the best player Coach klayman has had at EWU, and possibly the best to ever play there. The Freshman out of Graettinger, IA has all the tools, and will be a key part in the Eagles plans. And he can only get better.

Bench:

F – Josh Johnson SO (6-9, 225) A difficult off season hampered Johnson, and his skills deteriorated quite a bit. Last years Big Sky All-Freshmen PF, the coaches expected Johnson to take the SF from departing Ben Cooper, but with Friend having an excellent camp, Johnson was edged out for the starting spot. Last years numbers 29 Games, 30.2 MPG, 7.7 PPG, 2.9 RPG.

F – Chevalier King JR (6-3, 173) King had an excellent off season, and although listed as a forward, should see a lot time on the floor in a guard spot. He was used sparingly last year, posting 3.7 PPG, 0.7 RPG, 0.2 APG in 24 games.

F – Eddie Anderson FR (6-6, 241) Talented young freshman out of Shiprock, NM. Unfortunately for Eddie, the Eagles are forward heavy this year, but he could see some time at SF or SG this year.

C – Jeff Bullock FR (6-10, 254) Bullock was the first player to commit last year, and unfortunately is a disappointment. He’ll need a lot of work to get into the starting lineup, but might see some playing time being the only other natural center on the team.

SG – Joey Zinn FR (6-5, 169) Joey is an above average SG out of Butte Falls, OR. He’s redshirting this season to give him some more development time.

[klayman]

Recruits:

Ok, so somewhere I messed up and miscalculated how much money I had. We probably could have afforded the next level in scouting service, since we have over a $5,000 weekly budget for recruiting. With 3 scholarships, that means we should be able to go after all our main targets aggressively, and still have some light effort available for fringe targets. Obviously we’re looking for guards, although I’d like to pick up another center since Bullock was a disappointment. Unfortunately, this year’s class doesn’t hold many promising guards.

1. Linton Mullahon PG (6-2, 156, ****) Linton has Eastern Washington on his shortlist, and after initial conversations with him, we’ve decided he is our number one target. His highschool stats are low, but he has a high potential. Out of Valdez, AK.#17 PG, #107 Nationally, #31 West

2. Marc Dye SF (6-7, 209, ****) Yes, I know we’re forward laden, but Dye looks too good to pass up. Initial conversations go well, but he already looks like he about to commit to Northern Arizona. And we can’t let that happen! Out El Dorado HS in Chandler, AZ. #27 SF, #121 Overall, #35 West

3. Jamar Richardson SF (6-6, 160, ****) Did I mention there wasn’t many good guards to pick? Richardson is another good looking player with lots of potential, but he looks ready to sign with Washington. He has moderate interest in EWU, but for now we’ll just keep an eye on him. Out of Piano West HS, TX. #44 SF, #173 Overall, #45 West

4. Juan Calton C (6-11, 278, ***) Average center with excellent potential. He’s pulling down 11.5 RPG in high school. Initial conversations go well, but he’s not in any rush to commit, and we’re not in any rush to offer. Out of South Oak Cliff HS in Dallas, TX. Not Rated

5. Odell Mapp SG (6-3, 161, **) Talented guard who looks underrated by the scouting services. He’s got 20.0 PPG in high school, and has moderate interest in EWU. Right now he’s a late back up. Out of Maryvale HS in Phoenix, AZ. Not rated.

6. Matt Winn PG (5-11, 148, ***) Talented guard, but doesn’t have a lot of potential. Still he’d be a very successful guard in the Big Sky. He’s looking at USC though. Out of Westview HS in Portland, OR. #34 PG, #51 West. Not rated nationally.

7. Josh Brown PG (6-1, 151, *) Not very talented, but has Eastern Washington on his shortlist. I need a guard though, and if I can’t get anybody else, he seems like a sure thing. Out of Jesuit HS in Portland, OR. Not rated.

8. Victor Hill SF (6-7, 189, *****) Talented forward with excellent potential who is just too good to pass up. I’ve run over my phone bill expenses, so I don’t get a chance to gauge his interest, but I’ll assume it’s pretty low. Out of Lake Oswego HS, OR. #14 SF, #57 Overall, #16 West.

9. Correy Cabrera C (6-9, 201 ***) Above average center who might consider EWU a good place to come. He’s a step up from Bullock, so he’d be worth the effort. Out of Elgin HS, OR. #87 West.

The coaching staff decides that Mullahon and Calton will be the initial targets. We’ll go after everybody we can, as hard as we can (since we have lots of money), but we’ll hold off on the 3rd scholarship offer to see if we can find a late uncommitted recruit (much like we found Bailey). It’s a gamble, but there’s just not much there unless we add another forward to our team.

[klayman]

Actually, it costs almost $5k to aggressively recruit Mullahon and Calton, plus offer them both 1st week visits. So they’re the only recruits that get attention.

Week 2 (0-0)
Mullahon’s interest quickly dies when bigger schools come calling for him. However, I’m not about to give up, and will keep perusing him aggressively until he commits somewhere. Calton’s interest lies elsewhere as well, but we’ll cut the rope with him and go after Cabrera instead, who gives us a warmer reception. Mullahon and Cabrera get aggressive effort, and Cabrera gets a week 2 visit which he accepts. With still over 3 grand to spend we go after Matt Winn aggressively, but he refuses a visit. We go aggressively after Victor Hill as well, but he’s likely out of our reach now. We spend our last $600 dollars offering Josh Brown a bone in case we can’t get any guards to commit to EWU.

[klayman]

St. Francis (NY) Terriers (0-0) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (0-0)
We’re the favorites and own a 3-2 starter advantage as well. We have quite a size mismatch in our advantage on the post as well.

Bailey opens the game 0:07 in with his first basket for EWU, and the home crowd go nuts. So do the rest of the starters, and led surprisingly by Hathaway’s 15 first half points, we ease to the 48-24 half time lead. Both Hathaway and Bailey are 5-5 from the line.

The starters play very little in the 2nd half, but all manage to hit double digits by the end of the game. Our defense was just too much for the Terriers, and we cruise to an easy 79-44 opening win. Hathaway led all Eagles with 17 points, while Cockle grabbed 14. We shot an impressive 24 for 30 from the line. Bailey finished with 12 points, 6 blocks and 9 boards.

Arkansas LR Trojans (1-0) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (1-0)
We once again get the nod as the favorites, with a 3-2 edge in starters.

Some horrible shooting sees the teams play the first 5 mins without a basket between them. It improves quite a bit after that, and Chevalier King nails the buzzer beater to give us a 33-32 half time lead. King comes off the bench for 10 points, while Bailey leads all starters with 9.

The game remains close through most of the 2nd half. With 5 mins left to play, and the score tied up at 53, we proceed to miss our next 8 shots, and hand the Trojans the victory 63-74, however. King finishes the game with 20 while Cockle grabbed 18. Bailey had another strong game with 9 points, 4 blocks and 8 boards.

[klayman]

Week 3 (1-1)
Linton Mullahon is still not interested in Eastern Washington. We continue to aggressively chase him, however. Even at $1500/week. What the hell are we buying these kids to get them to come to EWU?

Cabrera now has us as his number one choice, and some more aggressive effort on our part is topped with a scholarship offer. Winn’s resistence has died, and he’s now not only willing to visit EW in week 3, but he also has us on his short list. That’s good news in case Mullahon can’t be turned to the dark side. Hill has no interest in EWU at all, but gets an aggressive effort nonetheless.

King’s 20 points earns him a starting position this week. We’ll slot him into SF and see how he handles it.

IP Top 5: Michigan State (4-1), Florida (3-1), Iowa State (5-0), Arizona (3-2), and Kansas (2-0)

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (1-1) @ LSU Tigers (1-1)
Tigers are of course the favorites, with a 4-1 starter advantage, Bailey being that lone starter for us. LSU is 0-1 at home so far.

We build up an impressive 11-3 run to start the game, Cockle leading the way with 3 points. We build up a 15 point lead with 5 mins remaining, but then let LSU go on a 15-2 run, and we squeak out of the half up by 1, 34-33.

We open the 2nd half, 7 for 7 with 4 threes, and by midway open a 20 point lead against the Tigers. The Tigers pretty much give up after that, and we cruise to the nice 89-68 upset. King rewards his start, by hitting 33 points including 6-9 from long range. Cockle and Bailey add 20 and 15 each, while Hathaway puts up 10 points with 14 assists.

Lehigh Engineers (2-1) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (2-1)
We get the nod as the favorites, with a 3-2 starter advantage. Lehigh beat us opening day last year, and we’re looking to avenge the loss.

We start out hot, led by none other than Chevalier King, and grab a 15-6 run to start the game. King had 8 of those 15. We continue to pound the Engineers, shooting 75% on the half, and go into the break up 52-34. King continues to impress, grabbing 14 points despite only playing 12 mins in the first half.

Lehigh manage to close down King in the 2nd half, but the game is never in contention and we easily win 86-68. King finishes with 18, leading all scorers, while Bailey matches his career high 15 points, with 8 boards and 5 blocks.

[klayman]

Week 4 (3-1)
All our players remain academically eligible to play. In fact, all but four players are over 3.00 GPA, and only redshirted Joey Zinn is below 2.00 GPA.

King has pretty much earned the starting SF the rest of the way. Sorry, Delvin.

Victor Hill gets tired of the phone calls and visits by Eastern Washington staff, and commits to Tennessee. Mullahon is still not interested in any thing we say, so we continue with our $1500/week habit of trying to get him interested, but it doesn’t look to promising. On the other hand, Matt Winn looks ready to commit, so we offer him our last scholarship. Both Winn and Cabrera get aggressive effort again this week, while Josh Brown gets a visit along with some aggressive recruiting. Most likely, Mullahon won’t commit to us, so I’ll still have that extra scholarship. We might be able to grab a late 5 star recruit again like with Bailey last year.

Brent Page, one of last years recruiting targets who said he didn’t want to sign with a Big Sky team when we talked to him, and then promptly committed to Montana, wins the Freshman player of the week.

IP Top 5: Michigan State (6-1), Florida (5-1), Arizona (5-2), Iowa State (7-0), and Kansas (4-0).

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (3-1) @ South Florida Bulls (1-3)
The Bulls get overall favorite distinction, but we grab a 3-2 starter advantage including a huge post height mismatch.

This game we start cold, which you wouldn’t expect to be in southern Florida. Maybe it’s the heat, but the team misses goes 0-5 from the field in the first 10 mins, and the only points we do get is our 5-6 off the line. Luckily, the Bulls can’t handle the heat as well, and only hold a 9-5 lead at this point. Things don’t get much better, but at least we start making some baskets, and go into the half tied at 28. King is 0-7 so far today, but the whole team is in the dumps.

We wake up in the 2nd half, but cannot gain any separation from the Bulls. With 1:23 left to play, they pull within 2. But Cockle replies with his 23 point, giving us our 4 point cushion back. We need a miss, and we get it as Brown grabs the defensive rebound with 1:03 left. Eddie Anderson hits 2 of 2 to put us up by 6, and steal the game away from South Florida. We finish with a 70-64 win. Cockle led all scorers with 23, while King rebounded back in the 2nd half to finish with 14 points.

Alcorn State Braves (2-2) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (4-1)
We’re back to playing the favorites role, with a 3-2 starter edge as well. We’re 2-1 at home this year, while Alcorn State is 0-1 on the road.

Bailey’s 11 1st half points lead us to a 38-34 half time advantage. Little used sophomore guard Jamal Richardson comes off the bench for 7 points in 3 mins.

The Braves keep things close for a bit, but run into foul trouble and we open a 10 point lead by the midway point. We manage to keep that pace to take the comfortable 78-66 win. Bailey finishes with a career high 17, while King grabbed 13.

[klayman]

Week 5 (5-1)
We run with much the same recruiting options. Mullahon, Cabrera, and Winn all get aggressive efforts. We add a moderate effort to Marc Dye, but he has no interest. We also add another player, Ramond Dement to our watch list, and give him light recruiting effort. He looks to be a bit underrated by the service, so he might be a good backup plan. Right now, I’d be happy if both Mullahon and Winn committed, but as long as I get one of them things will be ok.

IP Top 5: Virginia (8-0), Maryland (5-0), Iowa State (9-0), Kansas (6-0), and Michigan State (8-1).

Our CRI ranking comes out. We sit 76th which is a hell of lot higher than we started last year. Our schedule rank is 227, and that should rise considerably after next week’s match-ups (only to drop again when we go into conference play).

Of course, our next game is against Michigan State who sit ranked 5th right now. It’s our first Top 25 regular season meeting since I took control of the school.

[klayman]

Note: At this point I've upgraded to v1.19

Eastern Washington Eagles (5-1) @ #5 Michigan State Spartans (8-1)
The Spartans are clearly favorites with a 5-0 starter advantage. MSU is 6-1 at home, while we are 2-0 on the road. Both teams strength is defense, as the Spartans have allowed only a 30.1% so far this year, while we are averaging 15 turnovers created per game.

The Spartans are just too good for us to handle, and take an easy 44-24 lead at the break. King leads us with 9 points.

Things don’t improve much during the 2nd. We don’t play horribly, but nowhere near a level we would need to play to win, and lose 47-74. Hathaway ignites in the 2nd and finishes with 17. The Spartans finished with 15-1 steal advantage.

Mercer Bears (3-4) @ Eastern Washington Eagles(5-2)
We’re back to being the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. We are 3-1 at home, while the Bears are 1-4 on the road.

We start off well, but the Bears become hot, and we’re forced to come from behind to draw even at 30 at the half.

We pull away in the second, thanks to 16 points from Eddie Anderson in 11 mins and a strong game from Bailey, and hold on to win 69-63. Hathaway finishes with 22, Anderson with 16 and 6 boards, while Bailey had 10 points, 12 boards, and 3 blocks.

[klayman]

Week 6 (6-2)
No EWU underclassmen declare for the draft, which is not surprising. #22 Cincinnati is hit the hardest, with 3 juniors declaring for the draft, 2 of them starters.

We solve our guard shortage when both Linton Mullahon and Matt Winn verbally commit to EWU. Correy Cabrera knows a good thing when he sees it, and declares with them as well, and our recruiting season comes to a quick end.

Committed: Linton Mullahon PG 6-2 156lbs (****) Valdez HS, AK
Offensive: Good, Defense: Good, Handling: Excellent, Rebounding: Poor, Athleticism: Below Average, Potential: Good. High School Stats (10.2 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 6.0 APG) #17 PG, #107 Overall, #31 West

Committed: Correy Cabrera Center 6-9 201lbs (***) Elgin HS, OR
Offensive: Good, Defense: Good, Handling: Avg, Rebounding: Avg, Athleticism: Avg, Potential: Good. High School Stats (10.3 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 3.9 APG) #87 West

Committed: Matt Winn PG 5-11 148lbs (****) Westview HS, Portland, OR
Offensive: Excellent, Defense: Excellent, Handling: Excellent, Rebounding: Poor, Athleticism: Good, Potential: Below Avg. High School Stats (14.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 3.8 APG) #34 PG, #51 West.

IP Top 5: Maryland (7-0), Iowa State (10-0), Kansas (7-0), Michigan State (10-1), and Florida (9-1).

We drop to 100 in the CRI and our schedule rank takes a beating jumping to 272.

[klayman]

Wichita State Shockers (3-5) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (6-2)
We’re the favorites again with a 3-2 starter advantage. We’re 4-1 at home this season, while WSU is currently 1-3 on the road. We’re currently shooting 49.2% as a team, and out rebounding opponents by 5 per game.

We find ourselves down 22-9 by the mid point of the first half, but manage to fight back to tie it at 33 a piece at the break. Cockle leads the way with 21 points and 3 steals in the half.

We quickly fall 10 points back, and WSU holds it through most of the 2nd half. With 2 mins left, however, we fight back to within 6. Cockle off a pick, good for 2, 62-58. Foul and miss, gets us the ball back. Bailey with the 3, 62-61, WSU, just over 1 min left. Shockers miss the three, Cockle grabs the rebound, feeds to Bailey, misses the short jumper but grabs the rebound and a one handed slam gives us a 63-62 lead. We need a stop, less then 35 secs left. WSU with the easy two…BLOCKED by Bailey, Cockle with the rebound, gets the basket and the foul…hits the free throw for a 66-62 lead. WSU hit a last second shot, but it’s not enough and we get the nice come from behind win 66-64. Cockle finished with an incredible 37 points. Bailey finished with 7, 8 boards, and 4 blocks.

Eastern Washington Eagles (7-2) @ Loyola Maryland (2-7)
We’re favorites over the Greyhounds, with a 4-1 starter advantage. They are 1-0 at home, while we are 2-1 on the road so far this season. The Greyhounds are allowing opponents a +11 rebounds per game.

Both teams play well early on, but we turn the ball over constantly, and the ‘Hounds pull 10 points up. We fight back and only trail by 4 points, 34-30 at the break. Cockle is hot again with 14 points in the half.

We build an early lead in the 2nd half, but the Greyhounds fight back and hold a slight lead. With 1:17 left, down by 2, King hits the three to give us a 59-58 lead. Hounds get a traveling call, to give us the ball back, and Hathaway draws the foul and hits 2 for a 61-58 lead with :49 seconds left. Hounds once again with a traveling call, but Cockle loses the ball out of bounds. 21 seconds, Hounds ball, but they throw the ball out of bounds! Hathaway draws another foul and gets both with 11 seconds left and go on to win 65-58.

[klayman]

Week 7 (8-2)
Our CRI moves back up to 76th, with a 263 schedule rank.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (12-0), Michigan State (12-1), Maryland (9-0), Kansas (9-0), and Florida (11-1).

Cockle’s 37 against Wichita State is tied for the 3rd as the highest individual points scored in EWU history.

[klayman]

Wagner Seahawks (4-6) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (8-2)
We are listed as the favorites although Wagner holds a 3-2 starter advantage. Wagner comes into Reese stadium, 3-3 on the road, while we are 5-1 and playing great.

The Seahawks start off hot, but we match them basket for basket, and keep the game close. By the end of the half, we pull away to a 47-42 lead at the break, due to 22 of 31 shooting.

We continue playing well in the 2nd half, and open an early 10 point lead. We finish shooting 67.2%, and win easily 86-71. King finishes with 20, and Hathaway grabs 18 points as well.

High Point Panthers (5-6) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (9-2)
We’re clearly the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. HPU is 4-5 on the road while we are 6-1 at home.

King continues his great play, and hits 14 1st half points leading us to a 37-30 lead at the break.

We lose Bailey to injury early in the 2nd half, but the outcome is never in doubt as we open up a 20 point lead, and finish with a 77-60 win. King finishes with 21, while Anderson grabbed 13 points off the bench.

Bailey is out a month with a Peritonsillar Abscess.

[klayman]

Week 8 (10-2)
We enter conference play riding a 5 game winning streak and playing very well, but it remains to be seen if we can continue to dominate with out Bailey’s presence on the court. Delvin Friend will get the start in place of Bailey.

Our CRI is ranked 72nd with our schedule rank sitting at 244.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (14-0), Kansas (11-0), Florida (13-1), Texas Tech (12-1), and Michigan State (13-2)

[klayman]

Montana Grizzlies (5-7, 0-0) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (10-2, 0-0)
We’re the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. We’re riding a 7-1 home record, while Montana is 3-5 on the road. Freshman PF Brent Page, who was one of recruiting targets last year, leads the Grizzlies.

We come out flat against the Grizzlies, but a nice 18-5 run towards the end of the half, gets us back into the game, and we take the break with a 35-30 lead. The starters are contributing with Hathaway and Cockle grabbing 9 each, while Friend makes the most of his start with 8 1st half points.

We quickly add to our lead in the 2nd half, and with Eddie Anderson’s 20 2nd half points and foul trouble by Montana, we easily pull out the 84-67 win. Anderson grabbed 27, 20 in the 2nd half replacing an ineffective Chevalier King, and was a perfect 10-10 (5-5 from 3) and 2-2 from the line on the night. Cockle, Hathaway, and Friend all finished with double digits in points as well.

Montana State Bobcats (6-7, 0-1) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (11-2, 1-0)
We continue to be the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. MSU is 5-4 on the road this year, while we are 8-1 at home and on a current 6 game winning streak. Anderson gets the start for his 27 point performance against the Grizzlies over King.

Anderson continues to have the hot hand, and hits 19 1st half points against MSU. But some solid shooting by the Bobcats, keeps the game close, and we hold a slight 37-36 point advantage at the half.

The Bobcats work an early lead in the 2nd half, and hold a 9 point advantage with 2 mins remaining. Some costly misses and more clutch shooting bring us to within 2 with :52 seconds left. Cockle hits 2 frees to tie the game at 65 with :39 seconds left. We need a huge stop, but don’t get it as MSU hit 2 frees off a foul to regain the 2 point lead. But Anderson takes a Hathaway skip pass with 9 seconds remaining, and sinks the three to give us a 68-67 lead. MSU’s reply is off the mark, and Anderson adds two more for the very nice 70-67 win. The freshman Anderson finishes with 31 points and 10 rebounds, while Cockle added 14.

[klayman]

Week 9 (12-2)
Eddie Anderson wins both Big Sky Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week honors with a 29.0 PPG, 2.0 APG, 8.0 RPG, shooting 19-25, 7-10 from 3, and 13-14 from the line.

The bubble watch shows us entrenched in 52nd in the IP, while we’re 50th in the .400 poll, with a CRI of 66 and a 251 schedule rank.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (16-0), Texas Tech (14-1), Kansas (12-1), Florida (14-2), and Maryland (11-1)

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                2  0     12-2

Idaho State                  2  0      7-7

Portland State               1  1      7-7

Montana                      1  1      6-8

N. Arizona                   1  1      5-9

Montana St                   0  2      6-8

CS Sacramento                0  1      5-8

Weber State                  0  1      4-9

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (12-2, 2-0) @ Idaho State Bengals (7-7, 2-0)
Once again the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. We’re 3-1 on the road so far this year, while ISU is 5-4 at home.

We start off with a 7-0 run, and never look back, as Cockle’s 16 lead us to a 44-32 lead at the break.

We let the Bengals back into the game however, and they control most of the half, until a Eddie Anderson 3 with 48 seconds left to play finishes them off, and we go on to win 82-72. Cockle finished with 29, while Hathaway grabbed 19 as well. Chevalier King comes off the bench for 11.

Eastern Washington Eagles (13-2, 3-0) @ Weber State Wildcats (4-10, 0-2)
Weber State gave us fits last year, but clearly they are not the same team as they were. We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage and an 8 game winning streak. We’re 4-1 on the road, while the Wildcats are an appalling 2-8 at home this year.

The Wildcats are cold, and a 17-3 run off the start by the Eagles puts them on their heels. We cruise into the break up 45-27 with Cockle and Anderson both grabbing double digit 1st half points.

The game is never in contention, the only question is if we can hit the century mark, but heavy foul trouble by the starters leaves us short, but an easy 90-56 win, nonetheless. Cockle finished with 31, while King once again off the bench with 19 points.

[klayman]

Week 10 (14-2, 4-0)
Kevin Cockle wins the Big Sky player of the Week award with a 30.0 PPG and shooting 22-31 for the week.

Our solid play grabs a vote in the .400 Poll. Our bubble watch puts us at 52nd in the IP Poll, while we jump to 48th in the .400 Poll. Our CRI sits at 62, while our schedule rank is a low 276.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (17-0), Texas Tech (14-2), Kansas (13-2), Seton Hall (15-1), and Florida (14-3).

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                4  0     14-2

Idaho State                  3  1      8-8

Montana State                2  2      8-8

Portland State               2  2      8-8

CS Sacramento                1  2      6-9

Montana                      1  2      6-9

N. Arizona                   1  2      5-10

Weber State                  0  3      4-11

[klayman]

CS Sacramento Hornets (6-9, 1-2) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (14-2, 4-0)
We are clearly the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. The Hornets are 5-7 on the road this year, while we are 9-1 at home.

Cockle’s 19 and Anderson’s 12 lead us to a 49-31 half time score. We are clearly outmatching the Hornets in every area.

The 2nd half is much of a contest either as we cruise our way through the Hornets on way to a 90-66 victory, our 10th straight win. Cockle led all scorers with 26, while Anderson grabbed 20 along with 10 boards.

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (6-10, 2-2) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (15-2, 5-0)
NAU is probably the only competition in the Big Sky for us this year. We’re the slight favorites heading into the game, although NAU has a 3-2 starter advantage. They are a disappointing 2-4 on the road, while we are 10-1 at home this year.

Both teams are evenly matched, but the Lumberjacks make better use of their opportunities to pull to an early lead. An 11-0 run by the Eagles with 3 mins left in the half, gives us the advantage however, and we take a 36-29 lead at the break. Anderson and Cockle lead the way once again with 16 and 10 respectively.

We build on the lead in the 2nd, but with Anderson on the bench, NAU is able to close the gap to 6 with 2 mins left to play. A three quickly cuts that lead in half, and Josh Johnson has a chance to put us up by 5, but misses the 2 frees with 1 min remaining. NAU cut our lead to 1, before Hathaway goes to line…and misses with 39 secs left. 23 seconds, another chance, this time for Cockle…miss. 12 seconds left NAU go up by one. Time for one shot…Hathaway feeds Cockle…top of the key, last second jumper….GOOD. Eagles squeak out a 68-67 win. Anderson finishes with 26, while Cockle grabs 17.

[klayman]

Week 11 (16-2, 6-0)
Eddie Anderson wins the Big Sky Freshman of the Week, with a 23.0 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 14-15 FT shooting.

We still nail one vote on the .400 Sports Poll. Our CRI climbs to 58 with a 285 schedule rank, while our bubble watch has us listed at 48th in the IP, and 45th in the .400.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (19-0), Kansas (15-2), Michigan State (17-4), Seton Hall (17-1), and Temple (17-1)

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                6  0     16-2

Montana State                4  2     10-8

Idaho State                  4  2      9-9

Portland State               3  3      9-9

N. Arizona                   2  3      6-11

CS Sacramento                1  4      6-11

Montana                      1  4      6-11

Weber State                  1  4      5-12

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (16-2) @ Southern Utah Thunderbirds (10-8)
We take a break from conference play, and are the underdogs against Southern Utah, who also hold a 3-2 starter advantage. They are currently 4-3 at home, while we are 5-1 on the road.

We come out flat, and it takes awhile before either team gets going, but soon the Thunderbirds pull ahead of us. We can’t penetrate their defense, and head into the half down 35-26.

The 2nd half is much the same, our poor shooting kills us, and we never get closer than 10 points back, and lose 60-71. King led the team with 15 while Anderson got 13, and that’s about all on the night.

[klayman]

Week 12 (16-3, 6-0)
We welcome Roy Bailey back to the starting lineup, in time to finish off our conference schedule. Despite our winning, I’m moving Bailey to the small forward position in hopes of getting him more involved in the offence. Anderson will take the PF, while King is back on the bench again.

Despite the loss, we still nab a vote in the .400 Poll. Our CRI sits 54th with a 282 schedule rank, while the IP lists us at 51st, .400 Poll at 47th.

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                6  0     16-3

Idaho State                  5  2     10-10

Montana State                4  3     10-10

Portland State               3  3     10-9

N. Arizona                   3  3      8-11

Montana                      2  4      8-11

CS Sacramento                1  5      6-12

Weber State                  1  5      5-14

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (16-3, 6-0) @ Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (8-11, 3-3)
We beat the Lumberjacks back in Cheney by a last second basket. For this game, they hold the favorite nod, with a 3-2 starter advantage as well. We’re 5-2 on the road this year, while NAU is 5-6 at home.

We grab an early advantage, but can’t hold it against a skilled Lumberjack team. Cockle’s 20 1st half points thankfully give us a 41-39 half time advantage, however.

We hold a slight 2 point lead for most of the 2nd half, until a three from Cockle gives us a 9 point lead with 1:12 left in the game. It’s Cockle’s first points of the 2nd half. We finish with a 75-65 win. NAU shut down Cockle as he finished with only 23. Hathaway grabbed 21, while Bailey got 12 points and 6 boards in his new role.

Eastern Washington Eagles (17-3, 7-0) @ CS Sacramento Hornets (6-13, 1-6)
We crushed the Hornets 90-66 back in week 10. We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. We are 6-2 on the road this year, while Sacramento is 1-4 at home.

We take an early 11-3 run and don’t look back as Bailey’s 17 lead us to a 44-29 1st half lead. Cockle continues his strong play with 15 1st half points as well.

The Hornets close the gap in the 2nd, and some poor play by us brings them within 9 in the last minute, but some steady free throwing by Hathaway kills the comeback, and we take the 74-66 road win. Bailey lead all scorers with a career high 24 and 10 boards, while Cockle finished with 18.

[klayman]

Week 13 (18-3, 8-0)
Bailey’s new offensive output is rewarded with the Big Sky Freshman of the Week award. He grabbed 18.0 PPG, 1.5 APG, 8.0 RPG, and 1.5 BPG for the week.

We now have votes in both the IP and .400 Polls. Our bubble watch shows us 45 in the IP, 42nd in the .400, with a 50 CRI and a 289 Schedule rank.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (22-1), Michigan State (20-4), Temple (21-1), Florida (19-4), and Arizona (19-5)

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                8  0     18-3

Portland State               5  3     12-9

Montana State                5  3     11-10

Idaho State                  5  3     10-11

Montana                      3  5      9-12

N. Arizona                   3  5      8-13

Weber State                  2  5      6-15

CS Sacramento                1  7      6-14

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (18-3, 8-0) @ Montana Grizzlies (9-12, 3-5)
This is the first meeting between Brent Page (the player we wanted), and Roy Bailey (the star player we got). We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. Bailey, back in the PF spot, has the advantage over Page. Montana is 4-4 at home this year, while we are 7-2 on the road. We beat the Grizzles without Bailey back in week 8, 84-67.

The Grizzlies keep the score close, but some poor shooting and horrible turnovers towards the end of the half, give them the 35-27 lead at the break. Cockle’s time is limited due to 3 early fouls, and that is hurting our scoring ability.

The Grizzlies light us up in the 2nd, and we never come close to closing the gap, and drop our first conference game 65-78. Cockle finishes with 16, while Bailey outscores Page 10 to 6.

Eastern Washington Eagles (18-4, 8-1) @ Montana State Bobcats (11-11, 5-4)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. We are 7-3 on the road while MSU is 3-4 at home. We beat the Bobcats 70-67 in week 8.

We come out with a good game, but the Bobcats are unstoppable offensively. We fight on, however, and grab a 46-43 half time lead, despite their 75% shooting in the half. Cockle leads the way once again with 23 points.

The Bobcat’s leave their NBA talent in the locker room in the 2nd half, and we slowly build up a comfortable 10 point lead, which we hold on to for a 85-72 win. Cockle once again disappeared in the 2nd half, finishing with only 25 points. Anderson and Bailey contributed with 21 and 12 respectively.

[klayman]

Quick break while I run the SDSU Village Challenge.

[klayman]

Week 14 (19-4, 9-1)

Our CRI is 51st with a 292 Schedule Rank. We’re 45th in the IP and 43rd in the .400 Polls.

IP Top 5: Iowa State (24-1), Temple (24-1), Cincinnati (23-4), Seton Hall (21-2), and Michigan State (20-6)

Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.                9  1     19-4

Portland State               7  3     14-9

Montana State                5  5     11-12

Idaho State                  5  5     10-13

N. Arizona                   5  6     10-14

Montana                      4  6     10-13

CS Sacramento                4  7      9-14

Weber State                  2  8      6-17

[klayman]

Eastern Washington Eagles (19-4, 9-1) @ Portland State Vikings (14-9, 7-3)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. We’re currently 8-3 on the road, while the Vikings are 6-5 at home. We have a huge talent and height advantage in the post, and will have to take advantage of it.

We jump to an early 13-2 lead, and off of Cockle’s 12 1st half points, we lead by 10 36-26 going into the 2nd half.

The Vikings close the gap in the 2nd, but Anderson and Hathaway penetrate their defense, to keep us in front. PSU lose by 6, 70-64, and that’s as close as they came on the night. Anderson lead all scorers with 15, while Hathaway grabbed 13 with 6 assists. Cockle finished the night with 14. The guy would be amazing if he would play 40 mins.

Idaho State Bengals (11-13, 6-5) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (20-4, 10-1)
We’re the favorites again with a 3-2 starter advantage. ISU is 4-6 on the road, while we hold a 11-1 record at Reese Stadium. Our win over Portland pretty much guaranteed another Big Sky Title for us this year, but a win here would clinch it for sure.

The Bengals come out on fire, and finish the half with 60% shooting. Our starters on the other hand, are dead cold, and only Bailey keeps the team in the game with 13 1st half points, for a 37-32 1st half deficit.

We fail to pick up the pace in the 2nd half, and inexplicitly come out dead flat, as ISU build an insurmountable lead. We get embarrassed in our own building 52-76. Only Bailey showed up for this one, as he gets 16 with 8 boards. We shot less then 25% in the 2nd half, while ISU killed us from 3pt range.

[klayman]

at this point I've upgraded to 1.21. I'm also going to change the format of the dynasty a bit, so I can go through season a little quicker like in the SDSU VC Challenge.

Weber State Wildcats (7-18, 3-9) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (20-5, 10-2)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. WSU is 4-7 on the road, while we are 11-2 at home. Portland State lost both of their games last week, so we have clinched our second straight Big Sky Title.

WSU has the distinction of being the last ranked team in the CRI, but they keep the first half close until an 11-3 run gives us the 40-33 half time lead. Anderson (10) and Bailey (8) lead the way.

The Wildcats close the gap, and it’s a back and forth game for most of the 2nd half. Bailey hits 2 from the line to give us a 73-72 lead with 32 seconds remaining, but Hathaway draws a foul on WSU’s possession, and they sink both for a 74-73 lead. Anderson has a chance to win it in the dying seconds from 15 feet out…but rattles it in and out, and we get upset by WSU 73-74. Cockle finished with 21 after a strong 2nd half, and Anderson grabbed 14.

Portland State Vikings (15-11, 8-5) @ Eastern Washington Eagles (20-6, 10-3)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage and a 2 game losing streak. The Vikings are 8-4 on the road this year, while our home record has dropped to 11-3.

The Vikings play horrible, but heavy turnovers and lots of foul trouble gives PSU the 36-34 half time lead. We change up our gameplan for the 2nd half, slowing down the tempo, relaxing our pressing, and moving to a motion offence. That calms the turnovers and fouls, and we open an early 11 point lead, and finish with the nice 79-58 win. Hathaway had a strong 2nd half and finished with 26, while Cockle (20) and Anderson (15) also contributed.

Final Big Sky Conference Standings

Team                         W  L    Overall

Eastern Wash.               11  3     21-6

Montana State                9  5     15-12

Portland State               8  6     15-12

Montana                      7  7     13-14

Idaho State                  7  7     12-15

CS Sacramento                5  9     10-16

N. Arizona                   5  9     10-17

Weber State                  4 10      8-19

[klayman]

Navy Midshipmen (8-19) @ EWU Eagles (21-6)
We're favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. We’re here to avenge a loss last year that put an end to our 10 game winning streak. Navy is 4-10 on the road, while we have a 12-3 home record this year.

But that’s not going to happen. Navy shot 75% from the field in the 1st half, and we’re down by 13, 40-27 at the break. Things only get worse, as we can’t play defense against a 8-19 team, and Navy trounce us 73-92 at our home court. We outplayed them in every area, except for their 38-52 shooting, and 8-12 from long range. We’re definitely not heading into the conference tournament on a good note.

Pepperdine Waves (10-17) @ EWU Eagles (21-7)
We are once again the favorites, with a 3-2 starter advantage. Pepperdine is 6-8 on the road, while we are 12-4 at home, but only 1-3 in our last 4.

Pepperdine come out hard, and run a 12-4 opening lead, until we wake up and join the game. A last second three gives them the 32-28 half time lead. Our zone defense silences the Waves’ shooters, and our offence comes alive to take a 70-58 win to end the regular season. Cockle lead all scorers on the night with 24, while Anderson grabbed 12 and 11 boards.

We finish up the regular season 22-7 with a 11-3 conference record, most likely good enough for at least a ACT bid if we lose in the first round of the tournament.

Roy Bailey wins Big Sky Freshman of the Year, with a 10.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 2.5 BPG, and +81 regular season totals. He is also voted to the Big Sky All Freshman Team.

Kevin Cockle ends his collegiate career with his first nod to the Big Sky All Conference Team. He finished 2nd in the conference in just about every offensive category.

Next up Big Sky Conference Tournament

[klayman]

Big Sky 1st Round Matchups

Weber State Wildcats (8-21, 4-10) vs EWU Eagles (22-7, 11-3)
Weber is ranked #315 in the CRI. A first round loss could be devastating for us. Of course, we can’t forget that Weber beat us at home just 2 weeks ago.

The Wildcats keep the game close for most of the 1st half, until a 10-2 run opens it up for us, and we take a 42-33 lead in the break. Cockle leads the way with 12, but Brown sees his playing time cut with 3 early fouls. Brown picks up his 4th early in the 2nd, but by then we have increased the gap to 17, and cruise the rest of the way with a 87-59 win. Anderson led the way with 22, while Cockle (20), Hathaway (15), and Bailey (12) also had strong games.

In other Big Sky Championship Action
Montana State (2) over CS Sacramento (7)
N. Arizona (6) over Portland State (3)
Montana (4) over Idaho State (5)

Montana Grizzlies (15-15, 8-7) vs EWU Eagles (23-7, 12-3)
We were 1-1 against the Grizzlies this year.

The Grizzlies first 5 shots…all threes…all good. Doesn’t get any better from there, they shoot 83% from the field in the 1st half, and we find ourselves down 40-29 at the break. Unfortunately that’s as close as we get, as Montana finishes with 10-17 from 3 point range, and an 87-70 upset. Anderson led the team with 13.

Montana St (2) over N. Arizona (6) to face Montana in the final

[klayman]

Montana State takes the tournament, 91-66 over Montana, and gets the automatic nod to the NCT. They are, unfortunately the only Big Sky Conference team going this year, as we fail to return to the NCT. We do however get an ACT bid, with a 4th seed in the West.

Texas A&M Aggies (15-14) vs EWU Eagles (23-8) First round ACT West
We’re the underdogs for the first time in awhile, and the Aggies hold a 3-2 starter advantage. An early 12-2 run gives us a 34-27 half time advantage, with Anderson leading the way with 12 points. A 10 point lead in the 2nd is quickly eliminated, and the Aggies go on to cruise by us 70-64, thanks in part to awful shooting and brutal late turnovers. And just like that our promising season is over.

Montana State’s season doesn’t last much longer either, as they’re eliminated in the first round by 10th ranked USC, 97-55, ending all of the Big Sky’s postseason games.

North Carolina goes on to win the ACT.

The NCT final four:
Virginia (2) 65 over Florida (2) 64
USC (3) 61 loses to Texas Tech (1) 70

NCT Championship:
Texas Tech 66 over Virginia 55
Finals MVP: Donte Lang

Next up...stat dump.

[klayman]

Final IP Top 25
1. Texas Tech 34-5
2. Temple 34-2
3. Iowa State 32-5
4. Michigan State 29-9
5. Virginia 32-8
6. Cincinnati 32-6
7. Florida 30-8
8. Arizona 26-9
9. Connecticut 25-9
10. USC 28-8
11. UCLA 26-10
12. Seton Hall 28-7
13. Kansas 23-10
14. Syracuse 26-8
15. Alabama 26-9
16. Duke 23-11
17. Georgetown 28-8
18. Wisconsin 24-9
19. Wake Forest 25-9
20. Oklahoma 23-8
21. Providence 23-10
22. Illinois 21-13
23. Iowa 23-11
24. Michigan 23-9
25. Maryland 22-11

Final EWU stats: 23-9, 12-4

MPG
32.3 – Bailey
32.2 – Hathaway
31.4 – Cockle

PPG
17.2 – Cockle
11.7 – Anderson
11.2 – Hathaway

RPG
6.7 – Bailey
5.6 – Brown
5.0 – Anderson

APG
4.9 – Hathaway
2.7 – Cockle
1.7 – King

SPG
1.3 – Cockle
1.1 – Hathaway
0.7 – Brown

BPG
2.6 – Bailey
0.6 – Brown
0.3 – Friend

FG%
62.8 – Bullock
59.3 – Friend
57.9 – Brown

3P%
38.8 – Cockle
38.2 – Anderson
38.2 – King

FT%
85.6 – Anderson
71.4 – Hathaway
71.2 – Bailey

Departing seniors:
Delvin Friend (F) 63 Gms, 13.1 Mpg, 3.7 Ppg, 1.9 Rpg, -23.
Lindsey Brown (C) 60 Gms, 21.8 Mpg, 4.4 Ppg, 4.8 Rpg, 0.7 Apg, 0.6 Bpg, +33
Kevin Cockle (G) 64 Gms, 30.7 Mpg, 15.8 Ppg, 3.1 Rpg, 2.7 Apg, 1.3 Spg, +194

[Sporkimata]

I actually lived in Cheney for a couple of years. Good to see the team doing so well.

[klayman]

Coach Report Card:
Overall: A

Season Performance: A
Overall Regular Season Performance: A
Overall Post Season Performance: A
Recruiting: B
Fan & Alumni Support: A
Academics: A
Player Development: C

Overall Record: 46-18 .719
Conference Record: 15-8 .652
NCT Appearances (Record): 1 (0-1)
ACT Appearances (Record): 1 (0-1)
Pro Draft Picks (1st Rounders): 0 (0)
Average Recruiting Class Rank: 77
Conference Championships: 1
Conference Titles: 2
Academic Suspensions: 0

[klayman]

No Eagles are taken in the draft. Michigan State sees two juniors taken in the first 5 picks, while all 5 starters from Cincinnati (2 juniors and 3 seniors) are drafted by the NBA.

I get 10 job offers, with Colorado, Washington State, Wyoming, Southern Utah, and Pepperdine all being higher prestige schools. I also get an offer from Arizona State, which I have to consider for quite some time. But in the end, I refuse them all.

We make no coaching staff changes. My reputation as a head coach has gone up to Respected, probably the reason why I got the surprise Arizona State job offer.

Indiana grabs the number 1 recruiting class in the country, while it’s no surprise that no Big Sky Conference teams crack the top 20. We stick with Sid Nyquist’s Hoopz Galore as our scouting service. We could move up, but the 2* service has poor scouting of fringe and west region players, which is mostly what we’ll be after.

The computer gives us a horrible schedule, with 3 top ranked teams, and 10 away matches for the year. I spend a busy scheduling process making changes. Our Freshman class is listed as Below Average, one level lower than last year, while our composite talent level stays even at Below Average. I do the best to lower the difficulty of the schedule, but still get stuck with 3 or 4 games I didn’t want.

Eastern Washington Eagles Non-Conference Schedule

Valparaiso
San Francisco
New Mexico State
@ Utah
@St. Mary’s
@ #9 Iowa State
Binghamton
@ Minnesota
@ UT-Chattanooga
San Diego
Holy Cross
@ Texas A&M
American
UTEP

IP Top 25 Initial Poll
1. Florida
2. Kansas
3. Arizona
4. Duke
5. Michigan State
6. Kentucky
7. UCLA
8. Illinois
9. Iowa State
10. Texas Tech
11. Mississippi
12. Connecticut
13. Texas
14. North Carolina
15. Virginia
16. Indiana
17. Tennessee
18. Wake Forest
19. Maryland
20. Wisconsin
21. Alabama
22. Boston College
23. California
24. USC
25. Stanford

[klayman]

Meet the 2004-2005 Eastern Washington Eagles

SG – Joey Zinn FR(rs) (6-5, 169lbs) The departure of Kevin Cockle leaves a big hole on an already weak guard team. Zinn redshirtted last year for development, but didn’t develop as well as anticipated, leaving SG our weakest area. Assistant Head Coach Reggie Fox says “…Joey looks lost on the floor…appears to be a role player…do not see him getting to the point where he can be a starter.”

PG – Chevalier King Sr (6-3, 173) King was a major player last year, starting a handful of games, and playing an important 6th man of the bench. He had a tremendous off season, improving he’s skills considerably, and gets the starting nod at PG. Last year’s stats (32 Gms, 22.0 Mpg, 10.0 Ppg, 2.3 Rpg, 1.7 Apg, -17). AHC Reggie Fox says “…King shows signs of being a good passer and is a capable ball handler…needs more seasoning from an awareness standpoint…decision making not where it should be…crumbles a bit when spotlight is on him…one of the better players on this team…entering his final season as an overachiever.”

SF – Roy Bailey So (6-8, 242) Last year’s Big Sky Conference freshman of the year, moves to SF. He’s clearly our best player, and others have stepped up to fill the PF he held down last year. 03-04 Stats (25 Gms, 32.3 Mpg, 10.6 Ppg, 6.7 Rpg, 0.7 Apg, 2.6 Bpg, +91) AHC Reggie Fox says “…can be a nice offensive threat…one of the top defenders in the league…can dominate the glass…crumbles with the spotlight…better players on this team…loads of potential and talent….should be a real breakout season for him.” There’s a small chance that Bailey might go pro.

PF – Josh Johnson Jr (6-9, 225) Johnson lost his starting job last year due to a poor off season. This season he vastly improved in several areas to retake the starting PF role. He was a member of the Big Sky All-Freshman team in 02-03. 03-04 Stats (26 Gms, 7.7 Mpg, 2.0 Ppg, 0.8 Rpg, -18). AHC Reggie Fox says “…has good inside moves…can hit the jumper to keep teams honest…nice footwork as a post defender…lacks strength…lost on the floor…looks to be a starter…good skills and a valuable member on the team…joy to coach and a fan favorite.”

C – Jeff Bullock So (6-10, 254) Bullock filled in for Brown last year, and did a respectable job. Although initially considered a disappointment by me, Bullock had an incredible off season, significantly raising his value on the team. 03-04 Stats (30 Gms, 13.5 Mpg, 2.3 Ppg, 2.3 Rpg, +2) AHC Reggie Fox says “…unknown offensively…nice footwork for a post defender…improved effort and consistency on hitting the boards…right positioning most of the time…shaky on moving without the ball on offense…eager to see how Jeff does this season…might be peaking from an ability standpoint.”

Bench:

F – Eddie Anderson So (6-6, 241) Anderson had a great year last year, and was named to the 02-03 Big Sky all-freshman team. He had a good camp, but regressed defensively, and lost his starting job. However, he will be an important player off the bench and will continue to see plenty of mins this year. 02-03 Stats (32 Gms, 24.1 Mpg, 11.7 Ppg, 5.0 Rpg, 1.2 Apg, -38) AHC Reggie Fox says "…shown signs of breaking through offensively…nice footwork for a post defender…improved effort and consistency on hitting the boards…decision making and defensive positioning is not where it should be…should vie for a starting spot…continued to improve better than we expected.”

G – Ezra Hathaway Jr (6-2, 160) Hathaway has continued to regress since being named to the Big Sky All Freshman team in 01-02. A starter last year simply because of lack of options, he played reasonably well, but continued to depreciate talent wise in the off season. This year, we have several more options at guards, and Hathaway will start the games on the bench. 02-03 Stats (32 Gms, 32.2 Mpg, 11.2 Ppg, 2.2 Rpg, 4.9 Apg, 3.4 TO, +34) AHC Reggie Fox says “…raw from a playmaking standpoint…signs of being a good defender…lost a lot on the floor…injury prone…good skills and should be a valuable member of the team…has peaked as a player.”

F – Lucas Cooper Sr (6-7, 203) Seldom used Cooper had a very impressive camp, and will compete for minutes with the starters. He only saw action in 1 game last year. AHC Reggie Fox says “…shows signs of being a good passer and is a capable ball handler. Not a big defensive liability at this point…not a top rebounder, yet…would want to have the ball late in the game…un-phased in pressure situations…his hard work has allowed him more minutes that his talent would allow…joy to coach and is a fan favorite.”

Our three recruits were disappointing to say the least. Matt Winn has the most potential and will redshirt this season. Correy Cabrera might improve, while Linton Mullahon has no talent or potential to improve (despite being a 4* recruit). Jamal Richardson is another guard that might see some minutes, but we’ll be in serious trouble if we have to go any deeper on the bench.

[klayman]

Recruiting targets: Once again we have 3 graduating seniors (King, Cooper, and little used Jonathan Wesby) and get 3 scholarships to hand out (assuming Bailey doesn’t go pro, which I’m confident he won’t). Our priorities have to be guards and centers at this point with Bailey, Anderson, and Johnson holding down the forward positions.

1- Gary Holiday SG (6-2, 152) 5* out of Anchorage, AK. Ranked #6 in the West, Holiday would be a valuable member to the squad. He naturally has little interest in EWU, but we’ll continue to pursue him.
2- Trenton Lofton C (6-11, 195) 3* out of Santa Clara, CA. Ranked #65 in the West, Lofton has us on his shortlist. He has excellent offensive skills, and we’re weak at center.
3- Terry Riley SF (6-4, 175) 3* out of Yuma, AZ. Ranked #39 in the West, Riley has moderate interest in attending EWU, despite us having a forward heavy team. His high school numbers (5.2 Ppg, 4.7 Apg, 2.3 Rpg) are not impressive at all, however
4- Jack Reed SG (6-5, 177) 3* out of Anchorage, AK. Ranked #74 in the West. Reed has moderate interest in EWU, but isn’t going to solve our problems at the guard position.
5- BJ Kurtz C (6-9, 271) 3* out of Mercer Island, WA. Ranked #27 in the west, he has very little interest in EWU. He’s a better player than Lofton, but I think he’s out of our reach. We’ll keep an eye on him however.
6- Kevin Gipson SF (6-6, 169) 4* out of Ashland, OR. Ranked #16 in the West. Has very little interest in EWU, but doesn’t have big aspirations of attending high prestige ranking schools. We might be able to sway him.
7- Damon Anderson C (7-1, 208) 1* out of San Antonio, TX. Backup to Lofton and Kurtz with Center being a priority for us. Ran out of cell phone money before I could gauge his interest, but we are on his shortlist, so it must be high. Despite his 1* rating, he is putting up respectable HS numbers (14.3 Ppg, 3.0 Apg, 7.5 Rpg).

[klayman]

Originally posted by Sporkimata
I actually lived in Cheney for a couple of years. Good to see the team doing so well.

Glad you are enjoying it!

[klayman]

Season Outlook: Only Idaho has a better team then us in the conference. Everybody else is generally equal or less talent wise, so we look to have good odds of capturing our 3 straight Big Sky Conference title.

We’ll run a motion offense this year, considering most of our players are rated B or above with their handling skills. We’ll throw some looks at the one-guard front we ran last year, and an isolation offense if Bailey is hot. Our defense is definitely weaker than it has been in previous years. We’ll run a help man, with a 3-2 zone if we’re getting beat outside.

Our goal is of course to make it back to the NCT, which will likely only happen if we win the conference tournament this year. Our AD's goal remains to avoid embarrassment, which we've done effectively for the last two years.

[klayman]

We spend our first week recruiting Holiday (light), Lofton (aggressive), and Gipson (moderate). Lofton informs me his injury prone, and my attention quickly diverts to BJ Kurtz for next week. Holiday still has no interest in EWU, but gets an aggressive recruiting action and scholarship in week 2, as does Kurtz. Both recruits eat up our available funds for the week, and it completes our 2nd week recruiting.

Game 1: Valparaiso Crusaders @ Eastern Wash. Eagles
Crusaders are the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage, but we have a definite height advantage in the game. We start the year by hitting our first 7 shots, and continue finishing the first half with a 16-21 mark. Zinn (13) and Johnson (11) lead the way for a 43-28 half time lead. The Crusaders never get closer than 10 and we steal the victory with a 79-67 final. We end the game 30-47 from the field, and Zinn led the team with 18, while King had 17 points and 9 assists. Bailey (15 points, 7 boards, 5 blocks) and Johnson (13 points, 8 boards) had strong games as well.

Game 2: San Francisco Dons (1-0) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (1-0)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage Once again we hit our first 7 shots and build up to a 15 point lead before leading the Dons back into the game, and closing out the half only up 39-31. Zinn (10) and Bailey (8) lead the way. The Dons keep things close, and only trail by 6 with 1:12 remaining, but some clutch free throws puts the game away for a 74-64 victory. All starters hit double digits with Zinn (19) and Johnson (16) leading the pack.

Holiday (moderate) and Kurtz continue to get our recruiting attention, while Gipson gets an aggressive visit with our final scholarship offer. Odds are I’ll get one of these guys.

Game 3: New Mexico State Aggies (0-2) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (2-0)
NMSU are the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. We continue with our strong starts, grabbing an 8-0 run out of the block, and hold a 38-25 lead at the break. Bailey (12) and Zinn (10) are our 1st half leaders. The Aggies have a slow 2nd half start, and never recover, and we take the easy 72-59 win. Bailey was offensive spark with 21 and 12. Zinn(15) and King (13 and 8 assists) also contributed.

Game 4: Eastern Wash. Eagles (3-0) @ Utah Utes (2-1)
Utah takes the favorite nod with a 3-2 starter advantage. We continue to play well, and hit 14-23 in the first half for a 33-31 halftime lead. Bailey holds 16 and 6 at the break. We continue our solid shooting in the 2nd half and pull away from Utah for a comfortable 69-57 win. Bailey finishes with 22 and 10 and Anderson grabbed 13 important points off the bench.

Linton Mullahon becomes our first academic suspension in three years of my academic first program. Holiday (aggressive), Gipson (aggressive), and Kurtz (light) remain our recruiting targets. Which takes us to the end of November with a perfect 4-0 record.

[klayman]

Our 4-0 record earns us 2 votes on the .400 poll, the most votes we’ve received since I’ve taken over the program.

Game 5: Eastern Wash. Eagles (4-0) @ St. Mary’s Gaels (2-2)
We’re the underdogs for this game, but hold a 3-2 starter advantage. St. Mary’s has very weak guards so I’ll switch to a 1-2-2 zone and dare their guards to beat me. That works for the most part, but the offense is nowhere to be found in the first half, and we trail 35-27 at the break. Bailey continues to lead the team, collecting 8 points and 4 boards in the first half. We can’t get on track offensively until late in the 2nd but by then it’s much too late, and we lose easily 60-82. Bailey finishes with 19 while Zinn contributed 14 in a losing effort.

Game 6: Eastern Wash. Eagles (4-1) @ #3 Iowa State Cyclones (7-1)
The Cyclones are clearly the favorites with a 5-0 starter advantage as well. I have a 0-2 record all time against ranked opponents. We should get killed by this team, but shoot an unbelievable 15-20 in the first half to only trail 47-43. Not surprisingly we can’t continue that pace, and Iowa State walks all over us in the 2nd half, taking the game 61-85. We shoot 7-26 in the 2nd half. Zinn leads all scorers with 20.

Kurtz commits, but to Stanford, so our attention falls back to Lofton. Holiday (aggressive) and Gibson (aggressive) continue to get our attention, but still show little interest in EWU.

Game 7: Binghamton Bearcats (1-5) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (4-2)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage as we look to put the stop to a 2 game losing skid. We start the game with a 28-4 run, and it’s pretty much a laugher from there. A 49-18 half time lead turns into a 79-52 win, as the bench takes us through most of the 2nd half. Bailey led all scorers with 17, while Johnson (14) and King (11 and 9 assists) contributed despite only playing half the game.

Game 8: Eastern Wash. Eagles (5-2) @ Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-4)
The Gophers are favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. Both teams start out strong offensively but the Gophers are a bit stronger and take the 36-31 half time lead. We keep pace with the Gophers, but fade towards the end, and drop the game 53-61. Zinn (14) and King (10 and 6 assists) were the leaders.

[klayman]

Holiday commits to Tennessee and we’re 0-2 on the recruiting trail this year. Lofton (light), Gibson (aggressive) and Reed (aggressive) are our targets for this week.

Game 9: Eastern Wash. Eagles (5-3) @ UT-Chattanooga Mocs (3-5)
We’re back to being the favorites, but the Mocs hold a 3-2 starter advantage. We’re very flat, and despite shooting well, turnovers and foul trouble lead us to a 38-32 deficit. We continue to throw the ball away but the Mocs fail to take advantage, and only lead by two with 1:56 left to go. Zinn draws the foul, but only hits 1, for a 60-59 Mocs lead. UTC reply with 2 to take the 3 point lead with 1:09 remaining. King find Zinn alone on the perimeter…good for three…it’s tied at 62. 47 seconds remaining…we need a stop! And get it as UTC loses the ball out of bounds. Zinn goes to the line to shoot 3 with 7 seconds left. Good! Good! And Good for a 65-62 Eagles lead. UTC with the prayer…no good! We squeak out a 65-62 win. Zinn lead all scorers with 21 and Bailey grabbed 14 and 13 boards.

Game 10: San Diego Toreros (6-3) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (6-3)
We’re the favorites despite the fact that the Toreros have a 4-1 starter advantage. We start off strong, and Joey Zinn’s 11 points give us a 38-26 half time lead. We quickly build a 20 point lead in the 2nd half, and the bench takes us the rest of the way for the 79-50 win. Zinn finishes the night with 22, while Bailey grabs another double-double with 13 and 10.

Nobody commits to EWU yet, but we look to have Reed and Lofton in the bag. Gibson is still very far away, so we decide to take a gamble on 5* Jean Francois Zupic, a PF out of Endeavour Hills, Australia. He’s ranked 5th overall but hasn’t received an offer yet, most likely due to his borderline GPA. It takes our entire budget to give him aggressive attention and offer him a scholarship, so it’s our only activity for the week.

Game 11: Holy Cross Crusaders (3-6) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (7-3)
We’re the favorites once again, despite the Crusaders having a 3-2 starter advantage. We are 5-0 at home so far this year, however. HC look to beat us from long range, and although a switch to a 3-2 zone hampers those plans, it’s not enough to prevent us being down 10 at the half, 42-32. HC continue to hit everything in the 2nd half, while we however cannot, and the Crusaders win easily 65-78. Bailey and Zinn both finish with 17 in a losing cause.

Game 12: Eastern Wash. Eagles (7-4) @ Texas A&M Aggies (9-2)
The rematch of our ACT 1st round matchup last year, the Aggies own the favorites tag with a 5-0 starter advantage. The Aggies start the game with a 28-4 run, and never look back on their way to a crushing 57-101 blow out. It is safe to say this is the worse defeat of my coaching career.

Zupic gets an offer from hated Gonzaga. But his interest in us has gone up considerably, so he gets another week of aggressive effort, leaving us no money to do anything else. I’m resigned to losing him to the Zags, however. And that takes into conference play with a 7-5 record, but having only won 3 of our last 8.

[klayman]

Game 13: Montana Grizzlies (7-5) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (7-5)
We start off our conference play, favorites over Montana with a 5-0 starter advantage. We outshoot, outboard, outplay the Grizzlies in the first half, yet for some unexplainable reason only lead by 4 at the break, 40-36. Bailey (12) is outscoring and outplaying Big Sky Conference Point leader Brent Page. We miss our first 9 possessions of the 2nd half, and have to fight to get back into the game. Page lights us up for 16 in the 2nd half, including a 3 with under a min to play, and we suffer a horrible 67-71 defeat. Bailey gets stuffed in the 2nd half, and finishes with only 14. One of those games where there is just nothing you can do to win.

Game 14: Montana State Bobcats (6-7, 1-0) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (7-6, 0-1)
Another favorite tag with a 5-0 starter advantage for us…guess this means another loss? Sure enough, against teams that shouldn’t be able to compete against us, the Bobcats own a 38-30 half time lead, simply because we can no longer defend in our home building. That and 10 fouls in the 1st half leading to 22 foul shots for the Bobcats. Hmm…We come out with a slim one point win, 69-68, despite that trend continuing into the 2nd half, and I being completely powerless to prevent it. Bailey and King both had 15 as they were the only players not to run into foul trouble.

Not a good start to conference play, teams we should be absolutely destroying are beating us in our own building. Trenton Lofton (3* C) commits to EWU. We continue to chase Zupic aggressively taking all our available funds.

[klayman]

Game 15: Eastern Wash. Eagles (8-6, 1-1) @ Idaho State Bengals (2-12, 2-0)
ISU are the favorites but we hold a 3-2 starter advantage. We go with a 3-2 zone and dare ISU’s weak post game to beat us. That seems to do the trick, and we take a 38-28 lead at the break, thanks to Bailey’s 8 points. We relax a bit in the 2nd but hold the 10 point cushion through the half, and pull away to a 77-60 win. Bailey finished with 16, while Johnson and Bullock each had 12.

Game 16: Eastern Wash. Eagle (9-6, 2-1) @ Weber State Wildcats (7-7, 1-1)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. Ratings wise, this team is no where near us. Game wise, it’s a completely different story as we cannot stop the Wildcats defensively at all. Luckily we’re able to hit the basket as well, and own a slight 40-37 half time lead. Weber State keeps pace with us throughout the 2nd half, until we finally pull away in the final min to take a 76-69 win. Bailey led the pack with 19, while Zinn and Bullock both added 18.

Zupic commits to Gonzaga, expectedly, however we do lock up Jack Reed (3* SG). We put some effort back into Kevin Gipson, offering him a scholarship as well. He is unlikely to commit to us however, and we’ll take a look at Bret Cornell, a 3* PG out of Phoenix, AZ. His interest in us is high, and he has decent HS stats.

Game 17: CS Sacramento Hornets (7-8, 2-1) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (10-6, 3-1)
We’re the favorites with a 3-2 starter advantage. The only thing that saves us from embarrassment in the first half is 20 trips to the charity stripe, and the 14 points we get from it, to take a 34-29 lead at the break. The Hornets foul trouble continues into the 2nd and we slowly open up a 20 point lead and finish the game with a 76-52 win. Zinn lead the way with 17, while Anderson grabbed 10 off the bench.

Game 18: Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (4-12, 1-3) @ Eastern Wash. Eagles (11-6, 4-1)
We’re the favorites with a 4-1 starter advantage. A solid first half sees us grab an early 10 point lead and hold it for the 44-33 half time advantage. Bailey closes out a strong first half with 14 points. The Lumberjacks never get closer than 10, and we pull away to the 83-66 win, with Bailey collecting 24 on the night.

So after a shaky start, we put together some solid performances to jump into control on top of the Big Sky Conference.