Click here for full 2021-22 schedule, including game times. Schedule is tentative and subject to change. Ticket information to come at a later date.
First-year head Eastern Washington University men's basketball coach,
David Riley, has announced the 2021-22 schedule today (Sept. 23). Home games will be a rarity before the New Year, as the defending Big Sky Conference Tournament Champions will only play three times at Reese Court prior to 2022.
Six players remain from a squad that advanced to the program's third NCAA Tournament a season ago. Along with 12 newcomers, Riley is also assisted by associate head coach
Arturo Ormond, assistant coaches
Mark Darnall and
Roberto Bergersen and returning director of operations,
Shawn James.
"We have a non-conference schedule that has a mix of some really good high-major programs and some championship contending mid-major schools which will prepare us well for Big Sky play," said Riley. "We have big goals for our team and the best way to test yourself and prepare is to go play against the best competition you can find."
The Eagles open up the season with a two-game road trip, starting on Nov. 9 at the University of Nevada in Reno. Three days later, on Nov. 12, they travel to Davis, Calif., for a matchup with the Aggies of UC Davis.
On Nov. 15, Eastern will host the Walla Walla Wolves for their home opener in Cheney, Wash.
In the back half of November, the Eagles will participate in the Empire Classic in Northridge, Calif. Their first matchup will be against the hosting Matadors of CSUN on Nov. 19. They will then wait and see who their next opponent will be, as the next matchup on Nov. 20 depends on the outcome of Eastern's game and the result of Texas State versus Dixie State.
The Eagles then return to the Inland Northwest for a post-Thanksgiving matchup with Washington State in Pullman, Wash., on Saturday, Nov. 27. It will be a highly-anticipated rematch from last season, where the Cougars squeaked out a win by a score of 71-68.
Eastern returns home for its second go-around at Reese Court on Dec. 2 against Southern Utah. It will be the first Big Sky Conference game of the season for the Eagles, who go back to non-conference matchups for a few weeks in the succeeding games.
On Dec. 4, they travel to Omaha, Neb., for a duel with Omaha. In their last meeting on Dec. 17, 2019 the Eagles trounced the Mavericks by a score of 97-56. Then, it's off to Boulder, Colo., for a contest against fellow 2021 NCAA Tournament team, Colorado, on Dec. 8. The Buffs won their first-round matchup against Georgetown, 96-73, in the tournament before falling to Florida State in the Round of 32.
On Dec. 11, the Eagles head to Grand Forks, N.D., to face off against former Big Sky Conference member, North Dakota, before returning to Cheney on Dec. 15 to play host to Multnomah. The last time EWU clashed with the Lions on Dec. 13, 2019, it resulted in an epic offensive outpouring, with Eastern taking the win by a score of 146-89, the highest-scoring game by any team in Big Sky history. Numerous other school and conference records were broken in the process, including EWU-alum Mason Peatling setting the mark for most points in a single game with his 54-point performance.
Non-conference play wraps up in Lubbock, Texas, with a matchup against Big-12 member Texas Tech on Dec. 22.
Eastern will play their second conference game of the season at Portland State on Dec. 30. They then ring in the New Year with a Jan. 1 meeting against Northern Arizona in Flagstaff, Ariz. The Eagles defeated the Lumberjacks in the 2021 Big Sky Conference Tournament by a score of 66-60 the last time out.
In their fourth home game of the season, EWU faces off against rival Montana on Jan. 6. The Eagles ended UM's 2020-21 campaign with an emphatic 78-50 victory in the conference tournament. Local foe Idaho concludes the home stretch on Jan. 8.
On Jan. 13, Eastern will be on the road again, first matching up with the Bengals of Idaho State in Pocatello, Idaho. A contest with Weber State is next up on Jan. 15 in Ogden, Utah.
A return to Cheney sees a two-game slate starting on Jan. 20 against Sacramento State. The Eagles have won 13 of the last 14 games played against the Hornets. Two days later (Jan. 22), they will face off against Northern Colorado.
A three-game road trip starts in the Bozeman, Mont., on Jan. 27. It will be Eastern's first look at the team they defeated in the 2021 Big Sky Tournament Championship, Montana State. The Eagles clinched an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with a 65-55 victory against the Bobcats on March 13, 2021. They will then travel for a few hours to Missoula, Mont., for their second meeting with Montana on Jan. 29. On Feb. 5, EWU will matchup with defending Big Sky Regular Season Champions, Southern Utah, for the second time of the season on Feb. 5 in Cedar City, Utah.
The three-game road trip will be followed up by a three-game home stand at Reese Court beginning on Feb. 10 versus Weber State. It will be a rematch from earlier in Big Sky play, just like the two following games against Idaho State and Montana State on Feb. 12 and Feb. 17, respectively.
A short bus ride to Moscow, Idaho, will see the Eagles play visitor to the Vandals of Idaho on Feb. 19. Over the following week, Eastern will stop in Greeley, Colo., to face off against the Bears of Northern Colorado on Feb. 24 and Sacramento, Calif., to follow up with a contest against Sacramento State on Feb. 26.
In their final two games of the regular season, EWU is back in Cheney. The first game will see them match up against Northern Arizona on March 3. The final game at Reese Court for the 2021-22 season will see the Eagles play host to Portland State on March 5, the first time the two teams will have seen each other since December.
It is then on to Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho, for the Big Sky Conference Tournament. The Eagles will return to Boise as the defending champions from a year ago. Games start on March 9, with the championship taking place on Mar. 12.
The 2021-22 schedule is tentative and subject to change. Stay tuned to GoEags.com for schedule updates and changes.
