CHENEY, Wash. — A new week brings a new year as Eastern Washington's basketball teams return to the court. Men's basketball has one final non-conference game tonight before it begins its defense of the Big Sky regular season title at Reese Court later this week. Women's basketball has been idle for nearly two weeks, but starts its conference title defense on the road. The two teams have matchups against the Montana schools to start 2025.
Men's Basketball – vs Eastern Oregon (Monday, December 30 at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time), vs Montana (Thursday, January 2 at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time), vs Montana State (Saturday, January 4 at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time) - Get Tickets
Eastern Washington is coming off a commanding 107-63 victory over Lincoln on Saturday, Dec. 21, and will look to carry that momentum into Big Sky Conference play. The Eagles will face Eastern Oregon on Monday, Dec. 30, at 6 p.m. in their final preseason matchup. Eastern's Big Sky campaign begins on Thursday, Jan. 2, with a showdown against rival Montana at 6 p.m., followed by a game against Montana State on Saturday, Jan. 4, at 2 p.m.
Historically, Eastern Washington holds a 51-74 all-time record against the Griz, but the Eagles enter the matchup riding a four-game win streak. Against Montana State, Eastern is 50-49 all-time, with the most recent meeting in February resulting in an Eagles' victory.
In their dominant win over Lincoln, Eastern Washington was led by Sebastian Hartmann, who set a career-high with 20 points. Andrew Cook added 18 points, while Mason Williams chipped in 13 points. Jackson Seale and Emmett Marquardt also contributed double-digit performances, scoring 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Eagles were relentless on both ends of the floor, forcing 19 turnovers, grabbing 45 rebounds to Lincoln's 23, and tallying 13 steals. Their aggressive defense set the tone throughout the game, leading to easy transition opportunities and fast breaks.
Eastern Washington took control early in the first half, with Hartmann and Marquardt leading the charge. After a brief push from Lincoln, the Eagles went on a 9-0 run to extend their lead. By halftime, Eastern had built a commanding 59-41 advantage. The Eagles shot a blistering 67% from the field in the opening 20 minutes, while their defense forced nine turnovers and dominated the rebounding battle.
In the second half, Eastern continued to pull away, extending their lead to as much as 35 points. Strong inside play, combined with several explosive runs, helped the Eagles outscore Lincoln 44-22 in the final 20 minutes. Eastern shot 55% from the field in the second half to seal the dominant 107-63 victory.
Women's Basketball - at Montana (Thursday, Jan. 2 at 6 p.m. Pacific Time), at Montana (Saturday, Jan. 4 at 1 p.m. PT)
It's conference time for Eastern Washington women's basketball as they open their regular season title defense campaign with the Montana road trip. Eastern travels to play Grizzlies on Thursday (Jan. 2) followed by a trip to Bozeman to play Montana State on Saturday (Jan. 4). Both games are streamed live on ESPN+.
Eastern has a 23-70 record against the Griz in program history but has won the last four matchups. EWU is 39-49 against the Bobcats, winning the last two games.
The Eagles enter Big Sky play after a 4-8 record in its non-conference schedule, riding a two-game winning streak. EWU was last on the court on Dec. 20 against UC Santa Barbara and they closed out the non-conference slate with a 54-46 win.
Kourtney Grossman posted a career-game with 15 points and 17 rebounds, her second career double-double.
Alexis Pettis led all scorers with 17 points, one shy of her career-best. EWU held the Gauchos to 9.1 shooting from the three-point line and 26.7 percent overall in the game.
Through 12 games, Eastern has shown improvement in its rebounding ability, averaging 41.5 per game to rank third in the Big Sky. The team excels on the offensive glass, averaging 13.8 per game to lead the conference. A pair of true freshmen have taken the lead in the rebounding effort, as Grossman leads the team with 7.2 per game. Following Grossman's example, Jaecy Eggers is second on the team with 5.6 rebounds per game. Grossman is tied for seventh in the Big Sky and Eggers is tied for 13th.
The Eagles have worked to reduce turnovers as this season has progressed. They are averaging 12.3 over the last four games, after averaging 16.3 in the first eight. Eastern is fourth in the conference with a 0.83 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Peyton Howard leads the team with 39 assists - 3.3 per game - ranking 10th in the Big Sky. Working as a complete player, Howard leads the team and ranks third in the conference with 15.2 points per game. The Spokane Valley, Wash. native also ranks third in the Big Sky in both field goal percentage (43.3%) and three-point percentage (33.3%). Howard has three, 20-point games this season and has scored in double-figures in 11-of-12 games.
Single game tickets for men's and women's basketball are now on sale. Reserve your seats at Reese Court for the 2024-25 seasons by clicking on the link here, emailing tickets@ewu.edu or calling the ticket office at 509-359-6059.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
FOLLOW THE EAGLES
SOCIAL: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram
