LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Eastern Washington kicked off the 2025–26 season with a competitive showing on the road, falling 80–74 to No. 12 UCLA at Pauley Pavilion. The Eagles shot an impressive 54% from the field and battled the Bruins wire-to-wire, displaying poise and balance on both ends of the court.
"I thought we did a really good job sharing the ball," said Associate Head Coach
Ryan Lundgren. "Our three-point percentage wasn't great, but most of the looks were in rhythm and good shots. We played incredibly unselfish from top to bottom." Lundgren acknowledged areas for improvement, including turnovers and rebounding, but added, "It's progress…we have good guards, and we just have to keep getting better and learning from it."
Offensively,
Isaiah Moses led the Eagles with 15 points, while
Alton Hamilton IV added 13, and
Straton Rogers contributed 12, giving Eastern three players in double figures.
Jojo Anderson paced the team with five assists, and
Johnny Radford led with eight rebounds.
"It's easy to have a letdown effort, and we've got to do the exact opposite," Lundgren said. "Our guys have to come in with the confidence that we can play with anybody, and we showed that tonight."
Eastern shot 54% from the field compared to UCLA's 47% and edged the Bruins in free throws, 64% to 60%. UCLA led in three-point shooting, hitting 31% from deep, while Eastern finished at 28%.
First Half:
Eastern came out confident, trading baskets in a fast-paced opening stretch.
Straton Rogers opened the scoring for the Eagles, and
Isaiah Moses quickly found his rhythm inside and out.
Kiree Huie,
Johnny Radford, and
Alton Hamilton IV added key plays around the rim, highlighted by Hamilton's fast-break dunk that tied the game at 14.
Moses continued his hot start with a pair of threes and aggressive drives to the basket, while Radford contributed from the free-throw line to give Eastern a brief lead. The Eagles' defensive pressure created turnovers and transition opportunities, including a highlight Anderson-to-Hamilton connection that kept the energy high. UCLA closed the half strong, taking a 40–33 lead, but Eastern showed toughness and balance behind Moses, Rogers, and Radford.
Second Half:
After halftime, the Eagles matched UCLA's intensity. Radford opened with a jumper, and Moses and Rogers kept the offense flowing. Hamilton IV sparked a run with strong inside finishes and a corner three, while Anderson and Radford added clutch shots from deep.
Down the stretch, Huie contributed key baskets and rebounds, and Marquardt joined a late surge that trimmed the deficit to six in the final minute. Despite the comeback push, Eastern fell just short, 80–74, in a hard-fought road battle. The team's balanced effort, led by Moses' playmaking and Hamilton's spark off the bench, left plenty of positives to build on.
Up Next:
The Eagles remain in Los Angeles, facing LMU on Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 7:30 p.m. PST, before continuing their road trip to Boulder, Colo., to take on Colorado on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 1 p.m. PST.
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.
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