Eastern ends road trip with loss

SALT LAKE CITY — Eastern Washington concluded a four-game road trip with an 88-80 non-conference loss to Utah of the Big-12 Conference on Nov. 30.

The Utes (6-1) broke away from a two-point halftime edge, 43-41, outscoring the Eagles 45-39 to secure the win in the concluding game of Mountain to Sea Showcase.

“I feel heartbroken for these guys,” head Coach Dan Monson said.

“They put their heart and soul in that, they stuck to the game plan, and took one of the best three-point shooting team in the country and made them look pretty average.”

Despite the loss, Andrew Cook and Emmett Marquardt were named to the Mountain to Sea Showcase All-Tournament Team for their performances.

Against Utah, Cook led the way for Eastern Washington with 23 points, while Sebastian Hartmann (16), Nic McClain (14) and Marquardt (12) each contributed double-digit scoring.

Earlier on Nov. 26, Eastern lost to UC Santa Barbara 67-51 to open play in the Mountain to Sea Showcase.

There, a similar scenario towhee occurred in Salt Lake City played out.

The Banana Slugs had a slim 30-28 edge at the break but took advantage of cold shooting from the Eagles for a dominating 37-23 margin in the second half.

Marquardt posted his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Cook also contributed 14 points.

Eastern was back at Reese Court to face North Dakota in the opening game of the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge Dec. 4 before returning to the road at South Dakota State Dec. 7 in the two-game tournament.