LA GRANDE, Ore. – Mountaineer Men's Basketball suffered a tough setback loss Friday night at home, dropping an 82-75 contest to Bushnell University. The loss brings Eastern Oregon's record to 13-10 overall and 7-8 in conference play.

How it Happened
• EOU shot the ball going 45.2% on 28-62 made shots, but allowed Bushnell (8-14, 6-9 CCC) to shoot 48.3% on 28-58 made shots. 
• Helping the Beacons secure the win was 41 points scored in each half offensively, and a defensive effort that held EOU to under 40 points in each frame.
• EOU held the lead to much of the early going of the first half. The Mounties jumped ahead 13-7 to start and eventually went ahead 18-11 with just over 11:30 to play until halftime.
• Despite the quick start by Eastern, Bushnell battled back and tied the game at 22-all with 8:09 left on the clock. The two squads traded points before a late rally by the Beacons helped them lead by four at the break.
• The Mounties led 32-30 with 4:54 to go in the half, but the Beacons then outscored Eastern by a slim margin of 9-7 surge to lead 41-37 going into halftime. 
• Bushnell wasted little time expanding the lead in the early going of the second half. A 7-0 run by the Beacons gave them a 48-37 lead in the first three minutes.
• The surge by Bushnell was enough to keep the team in front by double figures for much of the night. The Beacons led by as much as 16, 65-49, late in the frame and never let EOU tie the game.
• Eastern looked to rally late in the game, but never got any closer than five points. The Beacons early second half surge ultimately propelled them to the seven-point win.

Mountaineers Stat Leaders
• Phillip Malatare led all scorers with 22 points on 7-13 shooting.
• Paul Pennington had 14 points 5-10 made shots and blocked a pair of shots.
• Cooper Lumsden added 13 points, going 5-10 from the floor. 
• Xavier Lovelace grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and chipped in six points.

For the Beacons
• Stevie Schlabach paced the offense with 16 points on 5-13 shooting.
• Keishon Dawkins added 14 points in the win and grabbed five boards.
• Jarrett Bryant led the way in rebounding with six boards and scored nine points.
• Drayton Caolie and Nico Wolff each scored nine points in the win.

By the Numbers
3 - EOU's loss on Friday is just the team's third at home this year.
9 - The Mountaineers blocked a season-high nine shots on Friday night. 
12 - Eastern has grabbed 12 offensive boards in back-to-back games.

Up Next
• EOU is back into action tomorrow, Jan. 29, against Corban University to close out a five-game homestand. Tip-off against the Warriors is set for 5 p.m. inside Quinn Coliseum.

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