The Eastern Washington University men's basketball team earned a much-needed road victory at Northern Colorado tonight (Feb. 24) in Greeley, Colo., by a score of 85-76. The Eagles trailed by one point at the half, but shot over 50 percent from both the field and three-point range overall with all five starters in double figures.
 
With the victory, the Eagles return to the win column with a 15-13 overall record and a 9-8 mark in Big Sky Conference play. Northern Colorado drops to 16-13 and 11-6. Eastern Washington and the Bears split the regular season meetings, as Eastern lost at Reese Court in mid-January.
 
All five starters scored in double figures in a balanced attack, led by Angelo Allegri (19 pts), Rylan Bergersen (17 pts), and Linton Acliese III (16 pts). Ethan Price scored 14 points and Steele Venters added 12 to round things out.
 
In all, the Eagles shot 54.9 percent (28-51) from the field, 52.6 percent (10-19) from three-point range, and 79.2 percent (19-24) from the free throw line in the victory. As good as they were on the offensive end, the Eagles were sharp defensively. The Bears were just 27-for-62 (43.5%) from the field and 14-for-40 (35%) from three-point range, and struggled at the free throw line, shooting 57.1 percent (8-14). Eastern had the edge in rebounds (35-30) and in the paint, (34-22).
 
"We played more solid defensively tonight and did a great job protecting the paint. I still think they shot pretty well from two, but we made them take shots that we were okay with them shooting rather than the shots they were trying to get. They weren't getting many uncontested layups at the rim and we were in-between them and the basket for most of the night," said head coach David Riley. "Our guys did a way better job communicating and talking. We looked connected. That all started on Monday. This was the best week of practice we've had since the Weber State week, and these are two of our bigger wins. We just beat a really good team on the road. This is a huge step for us defensively, now we have to do it consistently."
 
Northern Colorado scored five-straight points to take the early lead before the Eagles found their footing and evened things up with a 5-0 run of their own. After things moved into a 7-7 tie, Eastern Washington used a 7-0 run to take a 17-10 lead after making seven of its first nine field goal attempts.
 
The Bears quickly put themselves back in the game, scoring five-straight once again to cut the lead down to two, 17-15. With 5:23 left to play in the half, UNC used a quick 8-0 run to retake a 28-23 lead. After Northern Colorado continued to pull ahead, 33-27, Allegri put EWU back within three points after a three-point play, 33-30. Allegri would then make two free throw attempts with 1:11 left in the half to move the game back into a 35-35 tie.
 
At the half, Eastern Washington trailed by a slim margin, 38-37. The Eagles shot 52.2 percent (12-23) from the field in the first half and were 9-for-11 from the free throw line to go with four triples. Eastern held the bears to 41.7 percent (15-36), but the Bears made eight three-pointers and took 23 attempts in the first half alone for the difference. UNC also had seven offensive rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
 
A three-point play by Linton Acliese III knotted things at 44-44 early in the second half. The game moved into a 47-47 tie with 16:01 on the clock, and Eastern Washington never trailed again.
 
A quick 7-0 run that included a follow-up triple from Acliese, a jumper from Venters and a dunk from Allegri, gave Eastern its first lead since the first half of 51-47. The run would be 15-5 in all for the Eagles, and down the stretch, Venters and Bergersen hit back-to-back threes to put the Eagles ahead 59-52 with 11:53 left to play.
 
With 7:52 left to play, Eastern Washington still held a 63-58 lead and continued to pull ahead with its largest lead of 68-60 with 6:24 remaining. The Bears would close in with 1:46 left, 74-70, but Acliese was there with a layup followed by Allegri's third triple to put EWU back up by nine. When all was said and done, Eastern cruised to the 85-76 victory.
 
TOP PERFORMANCES: Angelo Allegri led the way with 19 points. He was 7-for-9 from the field, plus 2-for-4 from three-point range and 3-for-5 from the line. Allegri also collected six rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
Rylan Bergersen followed with 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. He shot 5-for-11 from the field with three triples, plus 4-for-6 from the free throw line.
 
Linton Acliese III came one rebound shy of a double-double, collecting 16 points and nine rebounds. He was a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe, plus 6-for-11 from the field with a triple.
 
Ethan Price followed with 14 points. The true freshman was 4-for-6 overall with a three-pointer, plus was 5-for-6 from the free throw line. He collected four rebounds, two assists and a steal.
 
Steele Venters rounded things out with 12 points, four rebounds and two blocks. Venters was 4-for-10 from the field, 2-for-4 from three-point range, and 2-for-2 from the free throw line.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE: The Eagles shot 54.9 percent (28-51) from the field, 52.6 percent (10-19) from three-point range, and 79.2 percent (19-24) from the free throw line in the victory. As good as they were on the offensive end, the Eagles were sharp defensively. The Bears were just 27-for-62 (43.5%) from the field and 14-for-40 (35%) from three-point range, and struggled at the free throw line, shooting 57.1 percent (8-14). Eastern had the edge in rebounds (35-30) and in the paint, (34-22).
 
There were six ties and five lead changes in the game, and EWU led for 25:49.
 
UP NEXT: The final road game of the year takes place on Saturday, Feb. 26 at Sacramento State. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Sacramento, Calif., on ESPN+ and 700-AM ESPN.