Game Notes

After opening the season with two games on the road, the Eastern Washington University men's basketball team hosts Walla Walla for its home opener on Monday, Nov. 15. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. Pacific time at Reese Court.

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: All fans ages 12 and older must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID test within the last 72 hours. A hard copy or a photo of a CDC-issued card is acceptable proof along with a state immunization registry document. If attendees cannot provide proof of vaccination, then they may present proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours. Please note that there is no on-site testing options available.
Tickets are available at GoEags.com/tickets.
 
FOLLOW THE EAGS: Monday's game will be broadcasted on ESPN+ with Greg Talbott and Marc Axton on the call. The Voice of the Eagles, Larry Weir, will be on 700-AM ESPN with pregame beginning at 5:30 p.m. Live stats can be found on EWUStats.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT: After a 91-76 loss to open the season at Nevada on Nov. 9, the Eagles traveled to UC Davis on Nov. 12 where they lost 84-76.
 
Four Eagles scored in double-figures and EWU was able to out-rebound the Aggies 51-to-41. Linton Acliese III (22 points, 11 rebounds), Ethan Price (11 points, 12 rebounds) and Rylan Bergersen (13 points, 10 rebounds) all turned in double-doubles.
 
Eastern Washington couldn't overcome its sluggish start, as the Aggies made 4-of-5 field goal attempts on a 7-0 run that spanned 57 seconds to take an early 11-2 lead. Turnovers were Eastern Washington's demise, as they committed 13 in the first half that turned into 18 points for the Aggies. Coming out of the half, Eastern Washington outscored UCD 11-5 in the first five minutes thanks to six points from Acliese, cutting the lead back down to 47-37. However, the Eagles were held without a field goal for a three-minute stretch and the Aggies led by double digits until 41 seconds remained in the game.
 
Eastern Washington turned the ball over 19 times which turned in to 23 points for UC Davis. However, the Eagles crashed the boards and out-rebounded the Aggies 51-to-41 and 20 of Eastern's were offensive. From the field, Eastern Washington was 21-of-66 to shoot 31.8 percent overall. From three-point range they were 8-of-25 (32%) and made 26 of their 36 free throw attempts. The Aggies shot 43.3 percent from the field (29-67), 23.1 percent from three-point range (6-26) and 64.5 percent (20-31) from the charity stripe.

A LOOK AT THE EAGLES: The Eagles are 0-2 to start the year and are playing their first game at home on Monday, which is also the third game in seven days.
 
Through two games, Linton Acliese III leads the Eagles with 20.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game, picking up double-doubles in both contests this season. He leads the Big Sky Conference in rebounding and is third overall in scoring, shooting 41.9 percent from the field.
 
Three other Eagles in Steele Venters (15.0 ppg), Rylan Bergersen (12.5 ppg) and Ethan Price (11.5 ppg) are averaging double figures, all ranking inside the top-25 in scoring in the Big Sky.
 
Price averages 4.5 rebounds per game, while Bergersen leads the Eagles in both assists (4.5) and blocks (1.0) per game. Bergersen's assists average is second in the Big Sky. Venters leads the Eagles and ranks eighth in the Big Sky with 1.5 steals per game and his three-point field goal percentage of 50 percent is tied for sixth.
 
As a team, Eastern Washington averages 76.0 points and 44.0 rebounds per game while shooting 37.9 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from three-point range and 71.7 percent from the foul line.
 
A LOOK AT THE WOLVES: The Walla Walla Wolves are NAIA members who play in the Cascade Collegiate Conference, sitting at 0-3 overall after two losses to Montana Western and one to Montana Tech.
 
The Wolves average 51 points per game and are shooting 33.5 percent from the field, 19.6 percent from three-point range and 61.1 percent from the charity stripe. Walla Walla also adds 10 assists and 34 rebounds per game. Andrew Vaughn is the team's leading scorer with 9.3 points per game while Adil Laji averages eight rebounds per contest.
 
Head coach Brandon Broome is in this third season at the helm, and also serves at the University's compliance and eligibility officer.
 
SERIES HISTORY: This will be the fifth all-time meeting between the Eagles and the Wolves, with EWU leading the way 4-0.
 
Walla Walla came to town for Eastern's home-opener on Nov. 10, 2017 where the Eagles won 82-61.
 
UP NEXT: Monday's game is the only home game in November for EWU men's basketball team. They'll return on Thursday, Dec. 2 to host Southern Utah in Big Sky Conference action.
 
Before then, EWU will play three more non-conference games on the road. First, the Eagles head to Northridge, Calif., for the Good Sam Empire Classic hosted by CSUN. Eastern takes on the Matadors on Friday, Nov. 19 at 2 p.m., and then will play either Texas State or Dixie State on Saturday, Nov. 20 at either 2 p.m. or 8 p.m.
 
The Eagles play at Washington State on Saturday, Nov. 27 at 4:30 p.m.
 
MORE PRESEASON NOTES: The Eagles are led by first-year head coach, David Riley. Riley may be in his first year at the helm, but he's a 10-year veteran of the program after serving as the director of operations, assistant coach, and associate head coach since the 2011-12 season. He was officially introduced as the new head coach on March 25, 2021.
 
Six returners are back from last season, where the Eagles finished 16-8 overall and tied for second in the Big Sky Conference with a mark of 12-3. The Eagles cruised through the Big Sky Tournament and advanced to the third NCAA Tournament appearance in program history where they narrowly fell to Kansas, 93-84 in the First Round. Joining the six returners are 12 newcomers, five of which are transfers.
 
Redshirt sophomore Austin Fadal, redshirt freshman Steele Venters, freshmen Isaiah Amato and Victor Radocaj, sophomore Ellis Magnuson and redshirt sophomore Casson Rouse are all back for another year with the Eagles. Both Magnuson and Venters averaged 3.6 points off of the bench last season. Magnuson made 13 starts in 22 games played, and Venters appeared in 17 games. Rouse competed in 18, averaging 2.9 points per game, while Amato and Radocaj appeared in 11 each.
 
Riley also brought in almost an entirely brand-new staff. Shawn James is back for his third year with the program, this time as a special assistant to the head coach. The Eagles are also led by associate head coach Arturo Ormand, assistant coaches Mark Darnall and Roberto Bergersen, and director of operations Pedro Garcia Rosado.
 
Eastern Washington will play two of its first 10 games on the road and will only play at home three total times before 2022.
 
After opening up the year at Nevada (Nov. 9) and UC Davis (Nov. 12), the home opener against Walla Walla is set for Nov. 15 at 6 p.m. at Reese Court. The Eagles will also get to open up Big Sky Conference play at home against the defending regular season champions and preseason favorites, Southern Utah, on Dec. 2.
 
EWU's non-conference slate includes road games at Washington State, Colorado, North Dakota and Texas Tech, along with the Good Sam Empire Classic hosted by CSUN. The Eagles play each Big Sky opponent twice, once at home and once on the road.
 
The 2021-22 Big Sky Championships are held in Boise, Idaho, from March 9-12.