GAME NOTES vs. Idaho

Back at home for the first time since Dec. 15, the Eastern Washington University men's basketball team looks forward to hosting a pair of games this week at Reese Court in Cheney, Wash. The Eagles host rival Montana on Thursday, Jan. 6 at 6 p.m., then host Idaho on Saturday, Jan. 8 at approximately 3:30 p.m.
 
Saturday's contest is a doubleheader with Idaho and Eastern Washington's women's teams, who tip at 1 p.m. One ticket gets you in to both games, and can be purchased at GoEags.com/tickets.
 
Both games will be broadcast regionally on SWX, as well as ESPN+. The Voice of the Eagles, Larry Weir, will have the call on 700-AM ESPN as well.
 
Tickets for both games are available at GoEags.com/tickets, and 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.
 
A LOOK AT THE EAGLES: Eastern Washington is 8-6 overall and 3-1 in Big Sky Conference games, entering Thursday's contest on a two-game winning streak. The Eagles are 2-1 at Reese Court this year, and have won four of their last five games.
 
The Eagles average 75.9 points per game. They lead the conference and rank 44^th in the nation with 16.3 assists per game, totaling 228 to rank 31^st. Eastern Washington pulls down 39.6 rebounds per game to rank third in the conference and 57^th nationally, with 554 total to rank 35^th. They average 28.93 defensive boards per game which is 28^th.
 
EWU is also one of the nation's top three-point shooting teams, firing off 372 this year to rank 26^th in the NCAA. They have made 121 attempts to rank 60^th, and have a stifling three-point defense, only allowing opponents to shoot 29.5 percent behind the arc. The Eagles are also solid at the free throw line, ranking 20^th nationally in attempts (298) and 18^th in makes (218).
 
Eastern boasts four players who average double figures, three of which rank in the top-14 in the Big Sky. Steele Venters (4^th, 17.3 ppg) leads the way, followed by Linton Acliese III (7^th, 15.8 ppg) and Rylan Bergersen (14^th, 12.9 ppg). Four Eagles also rank in the top 18 in the conference in rebounding.
 
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.
 
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 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 (7.2) per game. He's scored in double figures in nine out of the 11 games he has played in, grabbing double-digit rebounds in four. He is second in the Big Sky in field goal percentage, knocking down 52.5 percent (64-122) of his attempts. Additionally, Acliese is sixth in free throw percentage as well, making 33 of his 40 attempts from the line to shoot 82.5 percent. For good measure, he adds 1.2 assists, 0.3 steals and 0.5 blocks per game.
 
STAT SHEET STUFFER: Rylan Bergersen ranks second on the team and 14^th in the Big Sky with 12.9 points per game, but there's more to it. He's led the team in assists in nine games, ranking fourth in the Big Sky and 102^nd in the nation with 4.3 per game. He has 60 assists on the year to rank 61^st nationally, and has three-or-more assists in every game but one, including at least four in seven. He's second in the conference in assist to turnover ratio with 1.9.
 
He can rebound, too, ranking third on the team and 14^th in the Big Sky with 5.4 per game. He's pulled down four-or-more rebounds in 10 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 one. Last but not least, he ranks 35^th in the nation with 58 free throws made and is 36^th with 76 attempts.
 
VENTERS IS EFFICIENT: One of the sharpest shooters in the Big Sky, redshirt-freshman Steele Venters leads the team and ranks fourth in the conference with 17.3 points per game. Not only does Venters like to shoot, he does it well, knocking down 49.1 percent from the field to rank fourth in the Big Sky. He leads the league in three-point percentage as well, knocking down 2.8 per game at a clip of 46.2 percent. At the free throw line, he ranks ninth with an average of 80.5 percent.
 
Venters has scored in double figures in 10 out of 13 games, including six games with 20-or-more points. He has scored 20-or-more points in two Big Sky games, with a career-high 29 against Southern Utah. Venters has made a three-pointer in every game this year, including two or more in 11. He has a career-high six against Southern Utah and followed up with five against Omaha and Colorado. Nationally, he ranks 17^th in three-point field goal percentage, 71^st in three pointers made with 36, 66^th in three-pointers per game, and 85^th in points per game.
 
MOVES LIKE GELO: Angelo Allegri has emerged as a steady three-point shooter for Eastern Washington. He knocks down an average of two triples per game to rank 11^th in the Big Sky, and has at least one three-pointer in 13 out of 14 games. Additionally, he's made at least two in seven games and three-or-more in four. Against Multnomah on Dec. 15, he made a career-best six. Allegri ranks second on the team with 28 triples total, shooting 33.7 percent from behind the arc and averaging 5.9 attempts per game. He currently averages 10.4 points per game and has scored in double figures seven times, including a career-best 23 against Multnomah.
 
ROAD WARRIORS: Of Eastern's 14 games so far this season, 10 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 6-4 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. Thursday's game is the first at Reese Court since Dec. 15, snapping a three-game road swing.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Eastern Washington was shorthanded over the weekend, only having eight players available in two road wins over Portland State and Northern Arizona. In both games, EWU had very slight leads at the half but were able to secure comfortable victories at the end.
 
A 30-point day from Linton Acliese III helped Eastern win its ninth-straight over Northern Arizona on Jan. 1, ringing in the New Year with a 78-65 victory. It was a see-saw of a first half in Flagstaff. Both teams exchanged 6-0 runs to start and Northern Arizona held an 11-8 lead midway through the first half. The squads went basket-for-basket, as the first half alone saw eight lead changes and five ties. The contest moved in to an 18-18 and neither side led by more than three until Northern Arizona used runs of 5-0 and 6-0 to pull ahead 31-22. Eastern Washington started to find its groove late, going on an 11-2 run to end the half, taking a 38-36 lead into the locker room. EWU controlled the second half from the start, leading by double digits for the majority of the half. A pair of 7-0 runs by the Eagles gave Eastern Washington a lead of 57-46. Eastern Washington's largest lead of 66-54 came from an Acliese layup with 7:02 to play. The Eagles also held a comfortable lead of 72-60 with 3:20 to go and kept the Lumberjacks without a field goal for the final 2:47 of the contest en route to their ninth-straight win over Northern Arizona.
 
A LOOK AT THE GRIZZLIES: Montana is 10-5 on the season with a 3-1 mark in conference play, coming off of wins at Idaho State (78-54) and at Weber State. The game against the Wildcats ended in dramatic fashion, with a game-winner from Cameron Parker that was featured on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays at No. 9.
 
Montana is solid defensively, ranking 50^th in the nation in scoring defense with 60.9 points allowed per game. The Grizzlies also rank 13^th with just 9.9 turnovers per game. They are also steady at the free throw line, ranking third in nation with a mark of 81.1 percent from the line (202-249). From three-point range, Montana makes 8.1 triples per game at a 36.6 clip.
 
Josh Bannan leads Montana with 12.3 points per game, and five players average at least 7.5 points per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Since 2014-15, both Eastern Washington and Montana have been the two Big Sky powers, with the Grizzlies picking up 95 wins during that span and the Eagles with 92. They have both combined to win the last three Big Sky tournament championships and three of the past four regular season titles.
 
The Grizzlies lead the all-time series, 71-47, but Eastern has won three-straight. After Montana bounced the Eagles in two-straight Big Sky title games, EWU got slight revenge with two regular season wins in Montana last season, and then a victory in the Big Sky semifinals. In Cheney, the Eagles have won three out of the last four.
 
A LOOK AT THE VANDALS: The Vandals were paused last week due to COVID-19 issues, and will play against Montana State on Thursday night for their first game in 18 days. Idaho is 3-8 overall and 0-1 in Big Sky play.
 
Idaho likes to shoot from three-point range, ranking second in the Big Sky with a clip of 37.6 percent from deep. They have shot 43 percent or better from three-point range four times this year. Mikey Dixon leads the Vandals with 16.3 points per game, followed by Trevante Anderson with 13.0 points per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Washington trails the all-time series with the Vandals, 33-58, plus 21-37 in the Division I era. The Eagles have won two-straight over Idaho and are 11-16 against UI at Reese Court. Last season, Eastern won 89-75 in Moscow and then 90-64 in Cheney.
 
UP NEXT: It's back on the road for the Eagles next week, taking on Idaho State in Pocatello, Idaho, on Jan. 13 and at Weber State in Ogden, Utah on Jan. 15. Both games will be available on ESPN+ and Voice of the Eagles Larry Weir will have the call on 700-AM ESPN.