KIRKLAND, Wash. – In its second to final game of the 2016 calendar year, the EOU men's basketball team took to Kirkland, Wash., to battle the 13th-ranked Eagles.
 
Despite playing behind enemy lines, No. 16 EOU overcame a 20-point deficit and took out Northwest, 92-71, thanks to a strong final 30 minutes of play from the Mountaineers (13-2, 5-0 CCC).
 
Senior forward Bryan McGriff carded another double-double thanks to 23 points and 10 rebounds. Not far behind was senior guard Kentrell Washington who put together 18 points while dishing out four assists.
 
In the first stanza, Northwest (12-2, 4-2 CCC) quickly jumped out to a four point lead in the first minute, until freshman guard Max McCullough drained a three-pointer (4-3) to get things going for EOU offensively.
 
The Eagles then added six more points (10-3), before the Blue and Gold could connect on another bucket.  However, the Mountaineers then went on a six-nothing run of their own, closed out by a McGriff layup.
 
Now only up one, 10-9, the Northwest offense shifted into gear, going on a 22-3 run over the next six and a half minutes, increasing the Eagle lead, 32-12.
 
In spite of playing down 20, the Mounties refused to play discouraged. Junior guard Matt Wong entered the game and the Millbrae, Calif. native connected on four three-pointers over seven minutes helping the Mountaineers fight back.
 
Over the final 10 minutes and 10 seconds of the first half, EOU went on a 30-12 run, cutting the Eagle lead to only three, 45-42 at halftime.
 
A pair of McCullough free throws to start the second cut the Northwest lead to one, 45-44. However, the Mountaineers did not get their first lead of the game until the 17:04 mark, when McCullough connected with the basket on a three-point shot and delivered a 51-49 lead to EOU.
 
The next five minutes of gameplay then featured constant ties and lead changes as the Mountaineers and Eagles battled for the lead. Finally, EOU was able to develop a strong lead starting at the 12:45 mark as the Blue and Gold went off on a 11-2 run, capped off by a layup from senior forward Michael Hillman. With only nine minutes to play, EOU now had a nine-point lead, 69-60.
 
Northwest was able to cut the lead to only two (69-67) at the 7:35 mark, but that was as close as the Mountaineers let the Eagles get. Both the Mountie offense and defense finished the game hard, holding the Eagles to only four more points in the game, none of which came in the final four minutes.  
 
While only holding the Eagles to four more points in the game, the Blue and Gold offense continued to let things roll, adding in 23 more points before the final buzzer went off.
 
EOU outscored the Eagles in the paint (36-32), off turnovers (17-11) and off the bench (30-9).  The Mountaineers remain undefeated in Cascade Conference play and have extended their winning streak to seven games.
 
 
BY THE NUMBERS
 
0 – Loses in CCC play
43 – Total rebounds for EOU
55 – Combined points between McGriff, Washington and McCullough
 
UP NEXT
 
EOU takes on Evergreen in Olympia, Wash., tomorrow with tip scheduled for 7:30 pm.