GAME NOTES

In its third game in five days, the Eastern Washington University men's basketball team faces another challenge at Weber State on Monday, Jan. 31 in Ogden, Utah. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. Pacific time from Dee Events Center, with the contest being broadcast on ESPN+ as well as 700-AM ESPN.
 
The game marks the fourth of five-straight road games for Eastern Washington. The Eagles have been on the road since Sunday, Jan. 23, facing Idaho State, Montana State and Montana along the way. Once the Eagles get back to Cheney, they'll hit the road again for a Feb. 5 matchup at Southern Utah. Eastern Washington returns to Reese Court on Feb. 10 for another clash with Weber State.
 
The Eagles look to get back into the win column after narrow losses at both Montana State (69-65) and Montana (61-59). Eastern has not lost consecutive games since dropping its season openers at Nevada and UC Davis. Weber State is in first-place in the conference with a 16-5 overall record and 9-1 in Big Sky Conference play. Eastern Washington is in the middle of the pack, sitting at 11-10 and 5-5.
 
A LOOK AT THE EAGLES: Eastern Washington is 11-10 overall and 5-5 in Big Sky Conference games. The Eagles have played three-straight on the road with an 89-63 win at Idaho State (Jan. 24) and losses at Montana State (Jan. 27) and Montana (Jan. 29). Three of Eastern's five losses in conference play have been decided by five points or less, falling to Northern Colorado (87-83), Montana State (69-65) and Montana (61-59).
 
The Eagles average 76.6 points per game, the fifth-most offensive output in the conference. They lead the conference and rank 32nd in the nation with 16.1 assists per game, totaling 338 to rank 24th. Eastern Washington pulls down 38.76 rebounds per game to rank second in the conference and 43rd nationally, with 814 total boards to rank 38th. Eastern has out-rebounded its opponents in 13 games this year. They average 28.71 defensive boards per game which is 15th in the nation.
 
EWU is also one of the nation's top three-point shooting teams, firing off 187 total this year to rank 43rd in the NCAA. Eastern also has a stifling three-point defense, only allowing opponents to shoot 30.9 percent behind the arc to rank first in the conference and 75th nationally. Eastern Washington ranks 54th in the NCAA and second in the Big Sky with 8.9 three-pointers per game. The squad has made double-digit triples in four out of the last six games, with season highs of 14 against Idaho and 13 against Idaho State.
 
The Eagles are also solid at the free throw line, ranking 13th nationally in with 331 free throws made and 26th with 437 attempts. EWU makes 75.7 percent of its attempts to rank 40th in the country.
 
Eastern is 3-0 this season when scoring 90 or more points, and 4-0 when shooting between 50-to-60 percent from the field.
 
Eastern Washington boasts four players who average double figures, three of which rank in the top-12 in the Big Sky. Steele Venters (5th, 16.8 ppg) leads the way, followed by Linton Acliese III (7th, 15.8 ppg) and Rylan Bergersen (11th, 13.4 ppg). Angelo Allegri rounds out the offense with 11.4 points per game to rank 25th. Four Eagles also rank in the top-22 in the conference in rebounding in Acliese (7th, 7.1 rpg), Allegri (10th, 6.6 rpg), Bergersen (17th, 5.1 rpg), and Ethan Price (22nd, 4.7).
 
YOU CAN CALL HIM BOOGIE: Linton Acliese III or "Boogie" was honored on Jan. 4 with the ROAR Organic Big Sky Player of the Week nod after leading Eastern to two Big Sky road wins at Portland State and Northern Arizona. It was the first Player of the Week nod for the program this season.
 
Acliese started the week with a 15-point output against the Vikings where he made 7-of-16 from the field to go with seven rebounds and two assists, helping EWU win 63-58.
 
Less than 48 hours later at Northern Arizona, he followed up with his best game as an Eagle thus far by scoring 30 points. He achieved his new career-high by making 13-of-17 from the field, 2-of-3 from three-point range, and a perfect 2-for-2 from the free throw line. Acliese also pulled down 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. He dished three assists and had a block in the 78-65 victory, which marked Eastern's ninth-straight win over Northern Arizona. The performance was the first 30-point output of Acliese's career with the Eagles, and his fourth with at least 20 points.
 
Over the two games, Acliese shot 60.6 percent (20-33) from the field, plus made three three-pointers and made both free throw attempts. He totaled 18 rebounds for an average of nine per game, plus had five total assists and a block while averaging 22.5 points per game.
 
Currently, Acliese ranks seventh in the Big Sky in both points (15.8) and rebounds (7.1) per game. He's scored in double figures in 16 out of the 18 games he has played in, including nine-straight, to go with five double-doubles. He is third in the Big Sky in field goal percentage, knocking down 50.7 percent (105-207) of his attempts. Additionally, Acliese is third in free throw percentage, making 51 of his 60 attempts from the line to shoot 85.0 percent which is 70th in the nation. For good measure, he adds 1.2 assists, 0.3 steals and 0.4 blocks per game.
 
STAT SHEET STUFFER: Rylan Bergersen ranks third on the team and 11th in the Big Sky with 13.4 points per game, but there's more to it. He's led the team in assists in 15 games, ranking third in the Big Sky and 78th in the nation with 4.4 per game. He has 92 assists on the year and has three-or-more assists in every game but two, including at least four in 13. He's second in the conference in assist to turnover ratio with 1.9.
 
Bergersen can rebound, too, ranking third on the team and 17th in the Big Sky with 5.1 per game. He's pulled down four-or-more rebounds in 16 games. On the defensive side, he's eighth in the conference with 1.4 steals per game, with at least one in every game but four. Last but not least, he ranks 28th in the nation with 91 free throws made and is 27th with 117 attempts.
 
In the two games against Sacramento State and Northern Colorado, Bergersen led the team in points, steals and assists. He averaged 20.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.0 steals in the contests. He also shot 51.9 percent (14-27) from the field, 60 percent (3-5) from three-point range, and 76.9 percent (10-13) from the free throw line. Against Idaho State, he scored nine points to go with five rebounds and six assists.
 
MOVES LIKE GELO: Angelo Allegri has emerged as a steady three-point shooter for Eastern Washington. He knocks down an average of 2.4 triples per game to rank fifth in the Big Sky, and has at least one three-pointer in 19 out of 21 games. Additionally, he's made at least two in 13 games and three-or-more in nine. Against Multnomah on Dec. 15, he made a career-best six. Allegri ranks second on the team with 50 triples total, shooting 37.0 percent from behind the arc and averaging 6.4 attempts per game. He currently averages 11.4 points per game and has scored in double figures 13 times, including a career-best 23 against Multnomah and 21 points against Idaho.
 
He is emerging as one of the team's top-rebounders, too. Against Sacramento State, he earned his first career double-double of 14 points and 14 rebounds, the most boards by an Eagle this season. His second double-double came at Montana with 11 points and 11 rebounds. He has led the team in rebounding in six games, including five out of the last seven. He has grabbed at least seven boards in eight out of the last 12 games, including eight out of the last nine. Allegri ranks 10th in the Big Sky with 6.6 per game.
 
VENTERS IS EFFICIENT: One of the sharpest shooters in the Big Sky, redshirt-freshman Steele Venters leads the team and ranks fifth in the conference with 16.8 points per game. Not only does Venters like to shoot, he does it well, knocking down 46.9 percent from the field to rank seventh in the Big Sky. He leads the league in three-point percentage as well, knocking down 2.8 per game at a clip of 46.6 percent, a mark that ranks eighth in all of Division I. At the free throw line, he ranks fourth in the conference with a clip of 84.6 percent.
 
Venters has scored in double figures in 15 out of 19 games, including nine games with 20-or-more points. He has scored 20-or-more points in five Big Sky games, with a career-high 29 against Southern Utah. Venters has made a three-pointer in every game this year except one, including two or more in 15. He has a career-high six against Southern Utah and followed up with five against Omaha, Colorado, Idaho and Idaho State. Nationally, he ranks eighth in three-point field goal percentage, 51^st in three-pointers per game, 55^th in total three's made, 80^th in free throw percentage, and 101^st with 336 total points.
 
ROAD WARRIORS: Of Eastern's 21 games so far this season, 13 have been on the road plus one a neutral site. The road has been kind to the Eagles, though, as they have a record of 7-6 away from Reese Court in true away games. Eastern picked up a gritty overtime win against CSUN on Nov. 19 and upset the Cougars in Pullman on Nov. 27 for signature road victories, and one loss is a 60-57 defeat at Colorado. The Eagles are wrapping up five-straight road games. It started off on a high note with an 89-63 win over Idaho State on Jan 24 before a 69-65 loss at Montana State and a 61-59 loss to Montana. It's now on to Weber State (Jan. 31) and Southern Utah (Feb. 5) for the longest road stretch of the year. EWU won't be back at home until Feb. 10 to host Weber State.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Eastern Washington University men's basketball team played its third of five-straight road games at Montana. The Eagles suffered their second-straight loss, dropping a heartbreaker to the Grizzlies by a final score of 61-59.
 
The Eagles held a lead with 4:28 left to play after the Grizzlies didn't score for nearly seven minutes, but it was Montana with the 59-56 advantage with 18 seconds left on the clock. That's when Steele Venters hit a corner three, tying the game at 59-59. With three seconds left, a foul was called on Eastern Washington and Montana made both attempts from the line to win 61-59.
 
Linton Acliese III led the way with 16 points to go with seven boards. Angelo Allegri turned in his second double-double of the year with 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Ethan Price added 10 points.
 
Eastern Washington took advantage of another scoreless drought of over six and a half minutes for Montana. Ellis Magnuson fired off a triple and Steele Venters hit a jumper to cut the lead to one, 50-49 with 8:02 left to play. After that, Eastern didn't score for 3:19, but Allegri drained another triple to give EWU a 52-50 lead with 4:28 to go for an 8-0 run. In all, Eastern Washington outscored Montana 14-2 over 9:42 of play.
 
The lead was short lived, as Montana went on an 7-0 run to pull ahead 57-52, holding Eastern Washington without a basket for 3:47. With 32 seconds remaining, Linton Acliese III made two free throw attempts to make it a three-point game, 57-54. The Grizzlies pulled ahead 58-54 before Rylan Bergersen got sent to the line and made both, making it a 58-56 game with 26 seconds left.
 
With 18 seconds remaining, Venters made his first triple of the game from the corner to tie things up 59-59. Moments later, Eastern Washington committed a foul to send Parker to the line. He made both with three seconds on the clock, as the Grizzlies won 61-59.
 
A LOOK AT THE WILDCATS: The Wildcats sit at the top of the Big Sky with a 16-5 overall record and a 9-1 mark in Big Sky play. Weber State's lone loss was on a buzzer beater to Montana back on Jan. 1 and it has won six-straight games.
 
Weber State is second in the Big Sky with 78.3 points per game, limiting opponents to just 69.3 points per contest. They lead the league with a field goal percentage of 48.0 percent. Luckily for the Eagles, the Wildcats are at the bottom of the conference in opponent three-point percentage with 36.1.
 
Koby McEwen ranks third in the Big Sky with 17.3 points per game, followed by Dillon Jones who is 17^th with 12.9. Jones leads the league with 10.4 rebounds per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Washington's games against Weber State were canceled last year due to COVID-19 protocols. You'll have to go back to March 7, 2020 at Reese Court to find the last time the two squads faced off. Eastern won 78-69 to claim the Big Sky Conference regular season title. Unbeknownst to the Eagles, that would be the final game of the season before the tournament got wiped out due to the pandemic.
 
The Eagles have won three-straight over Weber State, with their last loss coming at Reese Court on Dec. 29, 2018. Eastern Washington has not lost to the Wildcats in Ogden since Jan. 14, 2017. EWU trails the all-time series, 27-48 and are just 8-29 overall in Ogden.
 
UP NEXT: The fifth and final game of five-straight road contests takes place on Saturday, Feb. 5 at Southern Utah. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. Pacific time in Cedar City, Utah. Eastern will look to bounce back from an 89-76 loss on Dec. 2 at Reese Court against the Thunderbirds.