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­­­­­­­Eastern Washington University "Eagles" Men's Basketball (2-2/0-0 Big Sky) Nov. 20 – vs. Georgia State, 1:30 p.m., Las Vegas, Nevada Nov. 22 – vs. Prairie View A&M or Eastern Kentucky, 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m., Las Vegas, Nevada all times Pacific
Radio:	700-AM ESPN & 105.3-FM in the Spokane/Cheney area. Larry Weir calls the play-by-play. Broadcasts begin a half-hour prior to tipoff
Internet Radio:	http://www.tunein.com  (search for Eastern Washington University)
Radio  Mobile Phone App:	Via tunein radio
TV:	UNLV on the Mountain West Network
­­­Webcast:	All games in the MGM Resorts Main Event may be viewed via flohoops.com; All EWU home games and all Big Sky Conference games available via Pluto TV and http://watchbigsky.com
Live Stats:	http://mgm.statbroadcast.com for MGM Resorts Main Event links TBA; http://ewustats.com for all EWU home games.
Weekly Coaches Show:	To be announced.

A pair of neutral site games – at a magnificent new venue – are next for the Eastern Washington University men's basketball game as part of its stretch of 10-straight games away from home.
 
The Eagles, 2-2 on the season, will play Georgia State and either Prairie View or Eastern Kentucky as part of the fourth-annual MGM Resorts Main Event on Nov. 20-22 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The T-Mobile Arena is a new 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas strip, and opened April 6, 2016.
 
The Main Event tips off on Monday (Nov. 20) with Eastern Kentucky playing Prairie View A&M at 11 a.m. Pacific time, followed by Eastern Washington taking on Georgia State at 1:30 p.m. Two days later on Wednesday, Nov. 22, Eastern will play in either the championship game of the middleweight bracket at 1:30 p.m., or the consolation at 11 a.m.
 
The games in the tournament will be available via webcast at: https://www.flohoops.com. All EWU games will be carried live on 700-AM ESPN and 105.3-FM in the Spokane/Cheney area, with Larry Weir calling the play-by-play. Broadcasts begin a half-hour prior to tipoff and may also be heard via http://www.tunein.com (search for Eastern Washington University). A mobile phone app is also available via tunein radio.
 
Ole Miss, Rice, UNLV and Utah comprise the Heavyweight Bracket in the tournament, and as part of the "undercard" to the event, EWU is playing on the road at UNLV and Utah. Eastern fell to the Runnin' Rebels 91-76 on Friday (Nov. 17) in its most recent outing, and will play at Utah on Nov. 24 to conclude the first leg of its grueling road stretch.
 
Georgia State is from Atlanta, and the Panthers were 20-13 a year ago and 12-5 in the Sun Belt Conference. Thus far, they are 2-1, having lost to Ole Miss 77-72 on Friday (Nov. 17). Previously, the Panthers defeated Carver Bible College 90-50 and Rice 75-54 to open the season.
 
Through three games, sophomore D'Marcus Simonds is averaging 21.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. Interestingly, Simonds was the Freshman of the Year in the Sun Belt last year; in 2014-15 Eastern's Bogdan Bliznyuk was the Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year. The Eagle senior is averaging 19.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists through four games for EWU.
 
"Georgia State may be the best team we're playing early – they are really, really good," said first-year EWU head coach Shantay Legans. "They have a lot of athletes, a lot of transfers and probably have a NBA prospect at point guard. We have our hands full and it will be different challenge because they are perimeter based. We'll see what our perimeter defense will be like – (against UNLV) we gave up some blow-bys and drives."
 
The Colonels of Eastern Kentucky are also 2-1 this season, having defeated Kentucky State in its most recent outing on Nov. 16 by a 97-66 score. They also lost to Ole Miss 85-75 on Nov. 13 and beat Rice 73-72 on Nov. 10. A year ago, EKU was 12-19 overall and 5-11 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
 
Prairie View A&M was 13-20 last season and 10-8 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and is located in Prairie View, Texas. Also the Panthers, they are 0-3 thus far with losses to UNLV (98-63 on Nov. 15), Oregon (100-67 on Nov. 13) and Utah (83-62 on Nov. 10).
 
Eastern has never played any of the three teams in the tournament.
 
The Eagles are in the midst of a stretch of 36-straight days without a home game – one of just four NCAA Division I teams with such a road stretch this year. Eastern returns home on Nov. 25, then there are four more games before a pair of pre-Christmas home games.
 
The first leg of EWU's road stretch includes 4,432 airline miles, while the other trips in the road stretch will include 6,408 miles. That's a total of 10,840 air miles, not including ground travel.
 
The Eagles are coming off a third-straight appearance in a national postseason tournament, and were 22-12 overall a year ago. Eastern finished 13-5 in the Big Sky to finish second behind regular season champion North Dakota, and then the Eagles advanced to the semifinals of the league tournament. Eastern beat Portland 76-70 in an exhibition game on Oct. 29 in Portland.
 
The Eagles return eight letterwinners from last year, including a trio of returning starters – Bogdan Bliznyuk, Mason Peatling and Luka Vulikic. The others are Cody Benzel, Grant Gibb, Ty Gibson, Jesse Hunt and Sir Washington, with Jacob Davison and Joshua Thomas returning as a 2016-17 redshirts. A senior, Bliznyuk was a second team All-Big Sky Conference selection a year ago, and was the league's Freshman of the Year in 2014-15.
 
 
 

Game Notes

 
Eastern to Open Versus Georgia State in MGM Resorts Main Event on Nov. 20
 
The Eagles will play Georgia State and either Prairie View or Eastern Kentucky as part of the fourth-annual MGM Resorts Main Event on Nov. 20-22 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
 
Ole Miss, Rice, UNLV and Utah comprise the Heavyweight Bracket with Eastern Kentucky, Eastern Washington, Georgia State and Prairie View A&M competing in the Middleweight Bracket.
 
The Main Event tips off on Monday, Nov. 20 with Eastern Kentucky playing Prairie View A&M at 11 a.m. Pacific time, followed by Eastern Washington taking on Georgia State at 1:30 p.m. Monday evening's Heavyweight Bracket features UNLV-Rice at 7 p.m. and  Utah-Ole Miss at 9:30 p.m.
 
Two days later on Wednesday, Nov. 22, Eastern will play in either the championship game of the middleweight bracket at 1:30 p.m., or the consolation at 11 a.m. The heavyweight bracket consolation game is 7 p.m. on ESPNU, and the championship game follows at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
 
Tickets are now on sale via www.t-mobilearena.com. The T-Mobile Arena is a new 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas strip, and opened April 6, 2016. Eastern will also play at UNLV on Nov. 17 and at Utah on Nov. 24 as part of the "undercard games schedule" of the MGM Resorts Main Event.
 
 
MGM Resorts Main Event Schedule
 
Monday, Nov. 20

• Prairie View A&M (0-3) vs. Eastern Kentucky (2-1) – 11 a.m.
• Georgia State (2-1) vs. Eastern Washington (2-2) – 1:30 p.m.
• UNLV (3-0) vs. Rice (1-2) – 7 p.m.
• Ole Miss (3-0) vs. Utah (3-0) – 9:30 p.m.

 
Wednesday, Nov. 22

• Middleweight Bracket Consolation Game – 11 a.m.
• Middleweight Bracket Championship Game – 1:30 p.m.
• Heavyweight Bracket Consolation Game – 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
• Heavyweight Bracket Championship Game – 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

 
All games are at T-Mobile Arena; all times are Pacific.
 
Undercard Games Schedule
Nov. 10 - @ Utah 83, Prairie View A&M 62
Nov. 10 - Eastern Kentucky 73, @ Rice 72
Nov. 12 - @ Mississippi 85, Eastern Kentucky 75
Nov. 14 - Georgia State 75, @ Rice 54
Nov. 15 - @ UNLV 96, Prairie View A&M 69
Nov. 17 - @ UNLV 91, Eastern Washington 76
Nov. 17 - @ Mississippi 77, Georgia State 72
Nov. 24 - Eastern Washington @ Utah
 
 
Sir Washington Will Have Extended Stay in Hometown
 
With Eastern playing three games in a span of six days in Las Vegas, Eagle senior Sir Washington will have an extended stay in his hometown. Through three games this season, the senior guard has started every game and has averaged 5.3 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists. He's played 92 games in his career (21 as starter), and has averaged 5.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists.
 
Washington graduated in 2013 from Clark High School, where as a senior he led his team to a 29-3 record overall and 10-0 mark in the I-A Southern Sunset League standings. He was the MVP of the league as he helped the school go on a 22-game winning streak. The Chargers lost 59-57 to Desert Pines in the championship game of the NIAA Division I-A Tournament after beating Elko 45-40 in the semifinals. Washington averaged 14.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game, while making 43 percent of his shots from the floor (25-of-101 3-pointers) and 59 percent of his free throws.
 
Washington was also an All-Sunset selection as a junior, averaging 14.5 points, five rebounds and four assists in the 2011-12 season for Clark. He helped the Chargers finish 23-5 and place second in the Southwest League behind eventual State 4A Champion Bishop Gorman. Washington averaged 13.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game as a sophomore, and 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steals as a freshman. Sir also played AAU basketball for the Las Vegas Prospects.
 
 
For Third-Straight Game, Eagles Faced Players Weighing 245+
 
The Eagles opened the season against a much-smaller Walla Walla team and won by an 82-61 score on Nov. 10 in the debut for Shantay Legans as EWU's head coach. But since then, the Eagles have been facing a multitude of talented players weighing 245+ pounds.
 
Eastern fell 79-69 at Washington on Nov. 12 in which UW's Noah Dickerson scored 28 points and had 22 rebounds. Dickerson stands 6-foot-8, 245 pounds, and then Eastern had its hands full with a pair of Stanford players at that weight. Reid Travis stands 6-foot-8 and had 20 points and five rebounds against EWU. He averaged 17.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game a year ago, and had 48 points and 18 rebounds in his first two games. His teammate Michael Humphrey is 6-9, but scored only eight points against EWU on 3-of-13 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds and two blocked shots. He averaged 9.4 points and 6.2 rebounds last season and had 26 points and 27 rebounds in his first two outings.
 
Next was UNLV true freshman phenom Brandon McCoy, at 7-feet tall and 250 pounds. In his first two games as a collegian he has 40 points, 29 rebounds, three blocked shots and made 58 percent of his shots from the field – all in just 44 minutes of action. Against EWU, he scored 17 points and had eight rebounds in 25 minutes of action.
 
A consensus five-star recruit, he was rated by ESPN as the nation's sixth-best prospect at one point during his senior year. He was a McDonald's High School All-American and scored 13 points and had seven rebounds in the McDonald's High School All-American game. He averaged 28.6 points, 12.6 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game as a senior at Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, Calif., then played on the 2017 USA Basketball Men's U19 World Cup Team in Egypt.
 
 
In Just Third Game as Head Coach, Former Cal Bear Shantay Legans Gets First Win at Maples
 
Not only did the EWU basketball program get a win over a Pac-12 opponent that was a long time coming, but first-year head coach Shantay Legans got some personal gratification from EWU's 67-61 victory versus Stanford at Maples Pavilion. While playing for California for three seasons from 2000-03, he was a part of Bear teams which lost five-straight times to the nationally-ranked Cardinal, including three stompings at Stanford.
 
As a freshman in 2000-01, Cal lost at home 81-70 to No. 3 Stanford, then lost on the road 101-50 to the second-ranked Cardinal. The next season, Stanford was No. 1 in the nation and beat Cal 84-58 at Maples Pavilion, then was No. 2 when it beat the Bears 88-56 in Berkeley. In his final season at Cal in the 2002-03 season, Legans lost at Stanford 82-62 before winning 68-54 at home. In both of those games, Stanford was ranked 12th. Interestingly, his coach at Cal at the time – Ben Braun – was the analyst on the Pac-12 Networks television broadcast of EWU's upset of Stanford.
 
"I was a Cal Bear and I never won in this gym," said Legans after the victory. "It is a great feeling to beat Stanford at Stanford. I am so happy our guys came out and played the way they played. I grew up at a Cal Bear fan and I can tell you it is a great feeling to win here."
 
Also in his junior season, Legans scored five points and had an assist in a 56-27 stomping over Eastern in the championship game of the BCA Classic in Berkeley. One night earlier, in EWU's season-opener to begin the second year under head coach Ray Giacoletti, the Eagles picked up their first and only victory against a ranked NCAA Division I opponent in school history when they knocked off No. 10 Saint Joseph's 68-57. Eastern is now 1-24 versus ranked teams in school history.
 
Just over a year after that victory, Eastern upset Washington 62-58 in Seattle when Alvin Snow – now agent for former Eagle and current Brooklyn Net Jacob Wiley – had 24 points and seven steals against the Huskies. That victory on Dec. 14, 2002, was Eastern's last victory over a Pac-12 opponent until EWU knocked off Stanford to snap a 21-game losing streak against teams from that conference. Overall, EWU is now 13-83 against the Pac-12, including a 3-40 mark since becoming a member of NCAA Division I in the 1983-84 season.
 
Eastern had two other epic victories that Legans was a part of in the 2014-15 season. Eastern's heart-stopping 88-86 victory at Big Ten Conference member Indiana on Nov. 24, 2014, snapped the nation's third-longest non-conference home court winning streak at 43 in front of 11,636 Hoosier fans at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Ind. It was the first-ever win for the Eagles in 14 tries against a Big Ten Conference opponent and was the first Big Sky win on a Big Ten home court.
 
Later that same season, the Eagles advanced to their second NCAA Tournament in school history with a trio of victories in Missoula, Montana. Included was a 69-65 title game victory over Montana when Eastern out-scored the Grizzlies 21-6 in the final six minutes for the improbable comeback victory. The Eagles trailed by 11 before the furious rally gave EWU its first-ever tournament win over the Grizzlies.
 
 
No. 2 Seed in NCAA Tournament? RPI on Nov. 15 Placed Eagles & Weber State in top 6
 
When the dust settled from EWU's 67-61 win at Stanford on Nov. 14, the next day Eastern ranked sixth nationally in the live-rpi.com rankings. Rated so high based on a high strength of schedule, Eastern was just behind Big Sky rival Weber State at No. 5, with Washington holding down the top spot. At one point last year EWU's RPI was 57th on Dec. 13, and during its run to the NCAA Tournament in 2014-15 the Eagles were as high as 50th.
 
 
Contributors Galore for Eagles Versus Stanford
 
It takes a village to bring down a Pac-12 opponent, and the Eagles certainly had their share of heroes in the 67-61 win over Stanford on Nov. 14 to snap a 21-game losing streak to opponents from that league.
 
Leading for most of the game, Eastern didn't succumb to the pressure of leading a Pac-12 team on the road, and the 3-point shot was Eastern's friend down the stretch. True freshman Jack Perry hit treys with 11:10 and 8:04 left in the second half to spark an 8-2 Eagle run, then Sir Washington hit one with 5:18 to play to keep EWU's lead at 10. The Eagles made eight free throws in the final minute of the game, but also missed six in the last 1:12 to keep Stanford's hopes alive. Bogdan Bliznyuk sealed it by making all four of his in the last 10 seconds.
 
Prior to that, Eastern had a 12-0 run in the first half and 9-0 run in the second half that propelled them to the win. In the run before intermission, Ty Gibson had a pair of 3-pointers and another basket to score eight of EWU's points. A 3-pointer by Bliznyuk with 9:52 left during the run gave Eastern the lead for good. Eastern led 19-13 with 8:13 left and 33-27 at halftime. After intermission, Eastern led just 33-31 before a 3-pointer by Benas Griciunas and a pair of 3-point plays by Bliznyuk gave EWU a 42-31 advantage with 17:35 to play.
 
Bliznyuk scored 23 points to lead the Eagles in scoring, and had five rebounds and a pair of assists. Gibson scored all 11 of his points in the first half, and Jesse Hunt finished with 10 with eight boards. True freshman Jack Perry came off the bench to score seven, and Griciunas had 10 rebounds to go along with six points.
 
Since Eastern moved to NCAA Division I in the 1983-84 season, EWU is now 3-40 against the Pac-12 Conference after snapping its 21-game losing streak versus the Pac-12. Entering this year, Eastern has never played Utah, Arizona State or Stanford. Coupled with an 11-55 record versus Washington State, 1-14 mark versus Washington and a 0-14 record against other current members of the Pac-12, the Eagles have a 13-83 record all-time against that league.
 
 
With 6-foot-6 Bogdan Bliznyuk Seeing Time at Point, Eagles Feature Size
 
Led by Big Sky Conference Player of the Year candidate Bogdan Bliznyuk, the Eagles feature a team with size throughout their lineup. They were bolstered by the addition of 7-footer Benas Griciunas, a senior graduate transfer from UNC Charlotte.
 
A 6-foot-6 point-forward, Bliznyuk was named to the preseason All-Big Sky team, and is one of 10 returning players to the Eagle roster. The Eagles return eight letterwinners from last year, including a trio of returning starters -- Bliznyuk, Mason Peatling and Luka Vulikic. The others are Cody Benzel, Grant Gibb, Ty Gibson, Jesse Hunt and Sir Washington, with Jacob Davison and Joshua Thomas returning as a 2016-17 redshirts.
 
Bliznyuk is off to a great start, making 46.8 percent of his field goals and 90.6 percent of his free throws to average 19.3 points through four games. He also has 18 rebounds and 10 assists. On Nov. 8, Bliznyuk was selected to the Lou Henson Award preseason Watch List by Colllegeinsider.com. The award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I mid-major player, and the initial watch list featured 51 players from across the country.
 
In 107 career games (15th in school history), Bliznyuk is the 20th Eagle to join the 1,000-point club, currently ranking fifth with 1,505 points, passing 10-year NBA veteran Rodney Stuckey (1,438 points from 2006-07) in EWU's first game of the season, and then Dave Hayden (1,461 points from 1970-73) against Washington. Bliznyuk entered his senior season in 2017-18 needing just 375 points to break EWU's all-time mark of 1,803 points set by Venky Jois from 2013-16. In addition, if Bliznyuk plays 21 more games he will equal the record of 128 set by his former teammate Felix Von Hofe from 2014-17.
 
Bliznyuk concluded his junior season with 701 points, becoming just the fourth player in school history to hit that mark (Jake Wiley, a senior on the 2017-18 squad, ranks fifth in school history with 694). A senior, Bliznyuk was a second team All-Big Sky Conference selection a year ago, and was the league's Freshman of the Year in 2014-15. He also earned second team All-District 6 honors from the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He is formerly from Lutsk, Ukraine, and graduated from Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, Wash., in 2014.
 
 The Eagles finished the season with five Big Sky Conference records and 14 EWU marks, most broken as the result of EWU's 130-124 triple-overtime victory over Portland State on Feb. 4. Wiley and Bliznyuk set the most intriguing record when both scored a school-record 45 points in that game versus the Vikings.
 
 
Home Games Will be Cherished in 2017 Preseason
 
With just three home games in the preseason, the first season at the helm will be road-heavy and a challenging one for Shantay Legans and his team. Eastern will play eight opponents who played in national postseason tournaments last season, including five in the non-conference portion of EWU's schedule.
 
Three Pac-12 Conference opponents and a stretch of 36-straight days without a game at home are the task ahead. Three other teams in NCAA Division I will also have such a streak:
39 – Penn (Nov. 18 vs. PSU-Brandywine; Dec. 27 vs. Delaware State)
39 – Harvard (Nov. 12 vs. UMass; Dec. 21 vs. Boston University)
37 – New Mexico State (Dec. 12 vs. vs. Eastern New Mexico, Jan. 18 vs. Seattle U.)
36 – Eastern Washington (Nov. 10 vs. Walla Walla; Dec. 17 vs. CSU-Northridge)
 
After opening the season at Reese Court on Nov. 10 against Walla Walla in the debut of Legans' head coaching career, the Eagles go on the road for 10-straight games. The Eagles play at Pac-12 foes Washington on Nov. 12 and Stanford on Nov. 14, respectively, before playing three games in Las Vegas.
 
Utah and South Dakota advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), Georgia State advanced to the College Insider Tournament (CIT) and San Francisco and Wyoming joined EWU in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). The other three postseason opponents came from the Big Sky Conference – North Dakota in the NCAA Tournament and Idaho and Weber State in the CIT.
 
In all, Eastern will play teams from 10 different conferences, with all but two of its games versus NCAA Division I opposition. Seven opponents won at least 20 games a year ago – Georgia State, Utah, San Francisco, South Dakota, Wyoming, North Dakota and Weber State.
 
 
Graduate Transfer Griciunas Scores Team-Leading 18 in Unofficial Eagle Debut
 
Eastern's eight newcomers this season include Lithuanian seven-footer Benas Griciunas, a graduate transfer who has 59 games of NCAA Division I experience. He scored four points and had five rebounds and two blocked shots in his Eagle official Eagle debut on Nov. 10 against Walla Walla. He unofficially opened his Eastern career by scoring 18 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field in EWU's exhibition victory over Portland on Oct. 29. He had a trio of 3-pointers and also had nine rebounds. His best scoring performance while at UNC Charlotte was 14 points and his best as a freshman at Auburn was eight. He had 12 rebounds once while playing for the 49ers.
 
A total of 13 Eagles played in EWU's opener versus Walla Walla, and Griciunas was one of four newcomers to see action. The others were redshirt freshman Jacob Davison and true freshmen Richard Polanco and Jack Perry. Brendan Howard, Kim Aiken Jr., and Tanner Groves sat out the game as potential redshirts.
 
 
Veteran and Newcomer Honored on College Sports Madness Preseason All-Big Sky Squad
 
Senior Bogdan Bliznyuk and true freshman Brendan Howard were selected to the College Sports Madness preseason All-Big Sky Conference team announced Oct. 3. The 6-foot-6 Bliznyuk was a first team all-league pick, and the 6-6 Howard was selected as the Big Sky's Freshman of the Year by CSM. Howard, though, is redshirting the 2017-18 season.
 
Howard ended his career at Great Falls (Mont.) High School career with a school-record 2,083 points to become the first AA player in the state of Montana to exceed the 2,000-point mark (the previous record was 1,930). He was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Montana, was a four-time All-State selection and helped the Bison advance to the state tournament in each of his four years with the school.
 
"Brendan understands the game and plays extremely hard," said Legans. "Once he adjusts to the next level of competition, we expect big things from him in the years to come."
 
He had a 3.71 grade point average in high school, and is the son of former Montana State University players Bob and Kathleen Howard. Bob was his coach at Great Falls, and played two seasons in Bozeman for MSU. Kathleen is a native of Seattle who holds school records of 1,761 points and 990 rebounds at MSU. Brendan's brother, Bobby, went on to score 1,366 points and grab 600 rebounds for MSU.
 
 
Eagles Picked as High as Sixth in Preseason Polls
 
Last year the Eagles exceeded expectations of the prognosticators, and this season the Eagles will seek to do the same under first year head coach Shantay Legans.
 
Eastern has been picked to finish sixth by the media and seventh by the coaches in preseason polls released Oct. 13 by the league office. A year ago, Eastern was in a tie for fifth by the media and were also picked seventh by the coaches, but went on to finish as the league runner-up in the regular season.
 
Idaho, Weber State and Montana hold down the top three positions in both polls for the upcoming 2017-18 season. The media picked Montana State fourth, North Dakota fifth and Eastern sixth. The coaches picked Northern Colorado and Montana State in a fourth-place tie, followed by UND and EWU.
 
 
Eastern Honored For Fourth-Straight Year by the NABC for Academics
 
For the fourth consecutive year, the Eastern men's basketball team was honored with the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Team Academic Excellence Award announced last summer. In addition, a trio of players – including returning senior forward Bogdan Bliznyuk – were honored on the NABC Honors Court.
 
The team award was won by 209 colleges and universities for having a team cumulative grade point average of 3.0 and above for the 2016-17 season. Teams in NCAA Division I, II, II and NAIA Division I and II were eligible. Eastern and Gonzaga were the only NCAA Division I schools in the state of Washington to be honored, and were joined by Central Washington from NCAA Division II and Northwest College from the NAIA. Eastern, Idaho State and Montana were the only Big Sky Conference schools to be recognized.
 
Players on EWU's 2016-17 team included Academic All-America nominees Ty Gibson and Jesse Hunt, as well as their fellow Big Sky Conference All-Academic selections Jacob Wiley (Big Sky MVP), Bogdan Bliznyuk (second team All-Big Sky), Mason Peatling, Mario Soto and Luka Vulikic. Other members of the squad included Julian Harrell, Felix Von Hofe, Sir Washington, Cody Benzel, Michael Wearne, Grant Gibb and Geremy McKay, with Jacob Davison and Joshua Thomas redshirting.
 
Besides Bliznyuk, former Eagles Julian Harrell and Mario Soto were selected on the Honors Court. Recipients of the award must be a varsity player, and academically a junior or senior while earning a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or higher.
 
Bliznyuk is a from Lutsk, Ukraine, and graduated in 2014 from Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, Wash. He is a marketing major at Eastern, and currently has a 3.29 grade point average at EWU. A three-time member of the Big Sky All-Academic team, Bliznyuk is one of five returning players who earned that honor in the 2016-17 season. The others are Gibson, who has a near-perfect 3.99 GPA, Hunt (3.68 GPA), Peatling (3.96 GPA) and Vulikic (3.44 GPA).
 
 
Eagles Sign Standout Elijah Jackson from Chief Sealth HS in Seattle
 
The Eagles have signed Seattle's Elijah Jackson to a letter of intent to attend EWU and play for the Eagles next year, head coach Shantay Legans announced Nov. 9. Jackson is a 6-foot-4 guard at Chief Sealth High School in Seattle. He averaged 16.4 points, 2.4 assists, 2.2 steals and 2.9 rebounds per game as a junior to earn first team All-Metro League honors. He helped lead the Seahawks to the Metro League Playoffs in the 2016-17 season.
 
An exceptional jumper, he won the dunk contest at a Seattle versus Tacoma All-Star game and has also competed in track and field for Chief Sealth. He finished third in the long jump at the 2017 State 3A Championships with a personal-best leap of 22-10 3/4. He was also sixth in the high jump with a jump of 6-2 and eighth in the triple jump with a mark of 43-8. His best in the high jump is 6-6 and his best in the triple jump is 44-5 1/4.
 
He's accumulated over 400 hours of service in the community as well, including working with children with severe disabilities and volunteering at the Hoops For Life basketball camps. His parents are Jennifer Bermudez and Diallo "Steven" Jackson.
 
 
 

Comments from Head Coach Shantay Legans . . .

 
On Early Season Schedule: "Playing these games early show us what we need to work on. You can do some good things, but other teams find what you aren't good at and find ways to expose you. There are things we have to get better at, and that's why I love this schedule and this team. They are already getting better game-to-game, and they are so smart they know what they need to do."
 
On End of UNLV Game: "It's a fun team to coach, and I was pleased with the way they played the last three minutes of the game when we put the young guys in. They all played their hearts out and got up and down the floor. Jacob Davison played with a lot of passion and fire. We can leave this game on that – if players play like that at the end of the game that's a terrific sign for us."
 
On Turning Point Versus UNLV: "We had a couple of breakdowns defensively, and they made adjustments at halftime. We have to be better in our next game when we come out after halftime and make our own adjustments. There are a lot of things we left out there – simple plays we could have made. We missed some open threes and I think that rattled us a little bit. You can't blame a player for wanting to make plays and get his team back into the game, but I need to do a better job of making sure they stick to what we want to do. We knew they were going to make runs – they are a big-time team. But I need to do a better job of keeping them composed."
 
On Just Eight Turnovers: "They pressured us, but we did a really good job of protecting the ball. Other teams are averaging 20-plus turnovers against them. You can take positives away from games, and that was one of our positives. Our guys are a bunch of smart players and don't turn the ball over."
 
On Stanford Win: "It's amazing. Our guys deserve it. They came out and played the same way we did against UW, but we shot the ball better, even though the free throws still didn't fall. They came back and our coaches did a great job getting them prepared and ready. Our team is gritty and are a great bunch of guys. We have some terrific young men in our program, and our coaching staff did such a great job tonight. I'm so proud of these guys – coaches as well."
 
On Game Plan: "Our players understood exactly what they needed to do. We have some great leaders on this team. They did a great job and our coaches put them in the right position. They did everything we asked except make free throws at the end of the game. We told Bogdan they were going to double him early and he needed to make plays in the second half, and he did. Sir had a so-so first half, but he came out and hit a huge 3-pointer."
 
On Believing in Each Other: "There were things in that game where you saw in our team that they believe in each other. We talk about family, trust and commitment every single day. They did a great job in coming in here and believed in what we wanted to do."
 
On Buy-In by Team: "Everybody has to buy-in and everybody has to believe. I told our players we'll have to play through a lot of things in this game, including their coach on the sideline – I tend to get a little into it. I told them not to worry about me, I was just going crazy over some of the plays (Stanford) was making offensively. At the same time, our team came back and let their team defense do the talking. Our offense won't always travel, but our defensive effort has to. Our coaching staff got those guys ready, fired up and ready to go today."
 
On UW Loss: "Our team played hard and I'm proud of the effort they gave. When we go back and our staff looks at it, we'll figure out how we can make our players better. We feel like we let them down a little out there tonight."
 
On Bliznyuk: "Bogdan has been the personification of what we want our EWU program to look like. He is the perfect student-athlete and deserves all the accolades he is getting this preseason. He shows that hard work and determination pays off. We talked about it before the season started that he was going to be double-teamed and he has to make sure he's making the pass. He's making the pass and that's exactly what we're looking for. He's doing a great job of leading our players, getting them in the huddle and talking to make sure we are doing everything the right way. He's a great captain."
 
On Road Stretch: "It's going to be a great experience for our guys and will help us get ready for Big Sky play. We'll see who can play, and at what times during the game. It's a learning experience for me too, and the first game was a learning experience. Going on the road and playing seven straight, coming home and then going back on the road, will tell us a lot about our team. We'll see our character and where we are. I think we have a veteran group who knows what we are really playing for once we get into Big Sky play."
 
On Benas Griciunas in Exhibition Game: "I've been trying to tell people – he's a great person and a great teammate. He puts in all the hard work and he's a great-shooting big guy who makes a lot of threes. He hit a couple of those early and it changed the way Portland had to guard. He was out there making threes like he was Cody Benzel or Ty Gibson. We got a really good player when he decided to play his senior season with us."
 
On Academic Honors: "This is just a testament that we are more than just a talented basketball team. It also shows that academics are the highest priority for our student-athletes at Eastern Washington. I am proud of our players for finishing the year strong in the classroom, and setting an example for the incoming student-athletes."
 
 
 

Series Notes

 
* Eastern's next three games are against teams they've never played before – Georgia State, Prairie View or Eastern Kentucky, and Utah.
* Since Eastern moved to NCAA Division I in the 1983-84 season, EWU is now 3-41 against the Pac-12 Conference after snapping its 21-game losing streak versus the Pac-12 with a 67-61 victory at Stanford on Nov. 14. Entering this year, Eastern has never played Utah, Arizona State or Stanford. Besides falling to Washington 79-69 on Nov. 12, 2017, the Eagles lost to Colorado 76-68 on Dec. 22, 2016. It had been two years since Eastern had played a current member of league, having fell at Cal 78-67 on Dec. 19, 2014. Coupled with an 11-55 record versus Washington State, 1-14 mark versus Washington and a 1-14 record against other current members of the Pac-12, the Eagles have a 13-83 record all-time against that league.
* Eastern's 62-58 win at Washington in the 2002-03 season on Dec. 14, 2002, snapped a five-game losing streak versus Pac-12 Conference opponents dating back to Eastern's 83-82 overtime win versus Washington State on Dec. 22, 1997, in Kennewick, Wash. That victory over WSU was Eastern's first-ever win over a Pacific 8 or Pacific 10 Conference opponent since the inception of the conference in 1968. It was also Eastern's first win over Washington State since Dec. 1, 1952, when the Eagles pulled out a 72-71 overtime road win, which is EWU's last win in Pullman in the series. The Cougars had led the all-time series 50-10 and had won 17-straight games over the Eagles prior to that EWU victory in 1997.
 
 
 
 

Recent Game Recaps

 
Promising Start for Eagles Leads to Loss to UNLV
 
Eastern opened a six-point lead in the first half, but foul trouble and big runs by UNLV led to a 91-76 defeat for EWU on Nov. 17 t the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. The Eagles made 13 of their first 22 shots, but a stretch of nine-straight misses helped turn a six-point lead into a six-point deficit at halftime. A pair of 6-0 runs in the second half helped open a 13-point lead for the Rebels, who led by as many as 25 and no less than 11 after that. Eastern made only 38 percent of its shots and 21 percent of its 3-point field goals, one game after making 11-of-25 treys in a 67-61 upset at Stanford. Bliznyuk, Jesse Hunt and Richard Polanco all picked up three fouls in the first half of action. Those three players combined for 15 points and four rebounds in the first half, but played just a collective 20 minutes. Eastern had just eight turnovers against the pressure defense of UNLV, which had 15 itself. However, the Runnin' Rebels still lived up to their name, finishing with 13 fast-break points compared to three for EWU. The Eagles made only 3-of-14 3-point shots for 21 percent, compared to 6-of-12 for UNLV, which also out-rebounded EWU 44-33. Senior Bogdan Bliznyuk made 5-of-15 shots from the field and all six of his free throws to finish with 16 points in just 20 minutes of action. Redshirt freshman Jacob Davison had entered the game with no points in his first two games as an Eagle, but scored 11 on 3-of-7 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Sophomore Luka Vulikic chipped in nine points on 4-of-8 shooting, seven-foot graduate transfer Benas Griciunas had eight points and a team-high seven rebounds, and Las Vegas native Sir Washington also scored eight points.
 
 
In One of Biggest Wins in School History, Eastern Defeats Stanford 67-61
 
The third time was the charm for first-year Eastern head coach Shantay Legans. In just the third game of Legans' short head coaching career, the Eastern Washington University men's basketball team pulled off one of the biggest victories in school history by beating Stanford 67-61 Nov. 14 at famed Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. In the first-ever meeting between the two schools, Eastern made 11-of-25 3-point field goals compared to just 2-of-16 by the Cardinal. Runs of 12-0 before halftime and 9-0 after intermission helped the Eagles take the lead for good in the first half and hold a double-digit lead for most of the second half. Eastern made 8-of-14 free throws in the last 1:14 to survive a comeback attempt by the Cardinal and snap a 21-game losing streak versus Pac-12 opponents. Senior Bogdan Bliznyuk scored 23 points to lead the Eagles in scoring, and had five rebounds and a pair of assists. Sophomore Ty Gibson sparked Eastern in the first half with 11 points, Jesse Hunt finished with 10 with eight boards and true freshman Jack Perry came off the bench to score seven. Seven-foot graduate transfer Benas Griciunas had his first double-figure rebounding performance as an Eagle with 10, and also chipped in six points. Eastern had a 12-0 run in the first half and 9-0 run in the second half that propelled them to the win. In the run before intermission, Gibson had a pair of 3-pointers and another basket to score eight of EWU's points. A 3-pointer by Bliznyuk with 9:52 left during the run gave Eastern the lead for good. Eastern led 19-13 with 8:13 left and 33-27 at halftime. After intermission, Eastern led just 33-31 before a 3-pointer by Griciunas and a pair of 3-point plays by Bliznyuk gave EWU a 42-31 advantage with 17:35 to play. Eastern didn't succumb to the pressure of leading a Pac-12 team on the road, and the 3-point shot was Eastern's friend down the stretch. Perry hit treys with 11:10 and 8:04 left in the second half to spark an 8-2 Eagle run, then Sir Washington hit one with 5:18 to play to keep EWU's lead at 10. The Eagles made eight free throws in the final minute of the game, but also missed six in the last 1:12 to keep Stanford's hopes alive. Bliznyuk sealed it by making all four of his in the last 10 seconds. Eastern's defense did its part as well, holding the Cardinal without a field goal from 6:35 to 1:56 in the second half during an 0-of-6 stretch for Stanford. For the game, Stanford made just 33.9 percent of its shots compared to 38.6 percent for the Eagles. Stanford had a slight 45-41 rebounding advantage, and also had three less turnovers than EWU.
 
 
Huskies Hold Off Effort of Eagles 79-69
 
Eastern's defensive effort was good enough to win, but 11 missed free throws and 40 percent shooting by the Eagles helped Washington survive for a 79-69 victory over EWU Nov. 12 at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle. Eastern began a monstrous 10-game road trip with a promising defensive effort, holding Washington to 41 percent shooting. The first half featured 11 lead changes and seven ties, but Washington pulled ahead late in the first half and held-off EWU in the second half. Eastern used a 9-3 run – including a pair of baskets by Luka Vulikic – to take its biggest lead of the game with 6:12 left in the first half. But Washington followed with a 16-4 run to take the lead for good, and then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lead 40-34 at halftime. The Eagles closed the margin to four on a 3-pointer by Ty Gibson with 9:54 to play, but Washington went on a 10-3 run and led by double digits much of the remainder of the half. The Huskies didn't score for a more than five-minute stretch in the second half, but the Eagles couldn't capitalize. Washington missed five-straight field goals in that stretch, but the Eagles missed four shots of their own and didn't make a field goal for 5:06. Bogdan Bliznyuk scored 20 points to lead the Eagles, making 6-of-11 shots from the field and 6-of-7 free throws, and also had eight rebounds and three assists. Vulikic had his second-straight game scoring in double figures, finishing with 10. Gibson made three of EWU's eight 3-pointers and finished with nine points. True freshman Richard Polanco came off the bench to make all three of his shots and finish with eight points. Foul trouble limited him to playing just 12 minutes. Seven-foot graduate transfer Benas Griciunas played only 14 minutes because of foul trouble, and finished with eight points and three rebounds before fouling out.