Eastern Washington started a busy stretch of games on Thursday night, as they hosted the defending Big Sky Champion, Idaho State. The Eagles were unable to steal a win from the Bengals, dropping the contest, 87-66. Eastern's record is now 2-11 overall and 0-4 in conference games. Idaho State improved to 9-6 and 5-1 this season.

"I think the score is not indicative of the type of game it was," head coach Joddie Gleason said. "We were up one at half and this Idaho State team is really good. They are deep, experienced and they never let up on any possession. They are always locked in. You can see the experience and why they were the conference champion last year. It's just difference when you look at experience. We don't have a lot of players who have played minutes in the Big Sky and I think they are getting a taste for it and understanding to maintain that intensity for 40 minutes."

"My focus this week has been more of an offensive threat," forward Milly Knowles said. "I feel when we have to have an inside threat while the girls are shooting threes; we will be a more of an unstoppable team. I feel like we have always been a get-after-it team. When we are having fun and the defense is feeling the offense and we get going, answering each other runs makes it better."

ISU jumped out to a 5-0 in the first quarter, but Jaleesa Lawrence responded with a drive to the basket and an easy layup. After the Bengals had built a 9-3 lead, Eastern chipped away and went on a 5-0 run in response, powered by Jaydia Martin. The true freshman drilled a three-pointer and followed up with a layup to pull the Eagles within one. The game stayed tight through the end of the quarter, with Eastern trailing 16-13 at the break. Andie Zylak connected with a late three-pointer to keep the Eagles within a possession. Eastern shot 35.7-percent from the floor while holding the Bengals to an 18.8-percent mark.

Jordyn Boesel tied the game at 16 early in the second quarter, dropping on a three from the wing. The tie was short lived, as the ISU ripped off a 10-0, scoring a pair of three-pointers. Despite trailing by double-digits, the Eagles continued to run their offense and stop the deficit from growing. Eastern then began to chipping away at the lead and getting it down to five at the 2:50 mark. A technical foul on the Bengals put Martin on the line and the lead was cut again, now only three. On the ensuing possession, Martin hit her second three of the game and tied the game at 30 with 2:37 left in the half. Down two, Zyalak dropped in her second three of the game Eastern was ahead 35-34 with 42 seconds remaining.

The Eagles would go into the half up by one at 37-36, erasing the first quart deficit. Eastern found its rhythm in the second, firing off a 44.4 shooting percentage and 50.0-percent from three. ISU had lost its lead, despite shooting 52.9-percent from the floor.

The game went back-and-forth to open the third quarter, as the lead changed five times in the first three minutes. After the Eagles had a 40-39 lead on a Zylak layup, the Bengals drove ahead with a 9-0 spurt to separate. Lawrence and Martin each delivered with a three-point shot and cut into the ISU lead, bringing it to 50-46 with 3:52 left in the quarter. A 7-3 stretch in favor of the Bengals kept the Eagles at arms-length with a 57-49 score. Milly Knowles finished the third with a layup at the buzzer and closed the gap to 60-53 against ISU. Eastern was held to 27.8-percent shooting in the quarter, while the Bengals were firing on all cylinders at 64.3-percent from the floor.

ISU opened the fourth with a pair of three-point shots from Tomekia Whitman and the Eagles found themselves trailing by double-digits. The shots powered an 11-0 run by the Bengals to open the quarter. The Eagles fought back with a 5-0 run with baskets from Lawrence and Jacinta Buckley to leave the score at 71-58 with 5:38 left. It was a close as Eastern would get to the Bengals, as they continued to score effectively for the rest of the game. A 6-0 burst for ISU with 1:49 left to play closed out the Eagles, 87-66.

Eastern finished shooting 35-percent from the floor and 36-percent from behind the arc. ISU made the most of their shots, recording a 49.2 shooting percentage and 47-percent from three.

Top Performances
Jaydia Martin led the Eagles in scoring with 16 points on 4-of-16 (25%) shooting and 2-of-10 (20%)form three.

Milly Knowles nearly had a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds, while also adding two steals. Jacinta Buckley also just missed a double-double, scoring nine points and posting a game-high, 11 rebounds.

Andie Zylak returned to the lineup for Eastern and made an instant impact, scoring 11 points on 3-of-9 (33%) shooting. Jaleesa Lawrence also scored in double figures with 11 points on 4-of-10 (40%) shooting.

Idaho State's Tomekia Whitman led all scorers with 30 points on 11-of-17(65%) shooting.

Key Statistics
Eastern Washington recorded 14 offensive rebounds and used them to score 12 second chance points.

The Eagles also delivered good production off the bench, with 10 points to ISU's seven.

Eastern had three players score in double-figures and had four players record two or more made three-pointers.

Despite tying in rebounds(38), ISU had a strong advantage in the paint, with 40 points to 18 from the Eagles. The Bengals also worked well in transition, scoring 31 fast-break points.

Up Next
The Eagles keep working at home with Weber State on Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. Pacific Time. They finish the extended home stand with Portland State on Jan. 17 at 2 p.m.

As a reminder, proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within the last 72 hours for fans ages 11 or older is required for entry to home games. Masks must be worn for fans ages five years old or older unless actively eating or drinking.