OLYMPIA, Wash. – In a game that featured 15 lead changes, the Evergreen Geoducks nearly picked up the upset win over the 22nd-ranked Cal Maritime Keelhaulers before falling 79-75 in a non-conference men’s basketball game on Sunday afternoon at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

The Geoducks (1-4) got off to a quick start as a jumper by Bryce Phillip (Spanaway, Wash./Bethel HS/Green River CC) and a three-pointer by Cody Peters (Oak Harbor, Wash./Coupeville HS/Western Oregon Univ.) gave Evergreen the early 5-0 lead.   The Keelhaulers (7-1) battled back, pulling ahead by as many as eight with 4:12 left to play but a 7-0 run to end the half gave Evergreen a one-point 37-36 halftime lead.

In the second half, both teams came out strong as the Geoducks continued to control the pace.  After the Keelhaulers took the lead back with 3:33 left to play, a three-pointer by Frankie Johnson (Renton, Wash./Hazen HS) gave Evergreen a brief lead with 1:44 left to play but Jaqui Wiley made a layup with 50 seconds left as the Keelhaulers held on for the 79-75 win.

Evergreen was led by 16 points from Johnson, who also added five assists.  Kyle Calhoun (Seattle, Wash./Hazen HS/Marshalltown CC) added 14 points while Peters finished with 12 on the afternoon.  Michael Potter (Ridgefield, Wash./Ridgefield HS) led the Geoduck bench with 10 points.  Marc Taylor (Boise, Idaho/Skyview HS/Edmonds CC) nearly collected the double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.

Cal Maritime was led by 26 points from Casey Healy, who also added a team-high eight rebounds.  Blaine Blaser and Erik Hanson each added 14 in the win while Wiley finished with 10 on the game.  The Keelhaulers shot 51.8%, making 29-of-56 attempts from the field.

Evergreen will be back in action on Dec. 6 when they host Eastern Oregon to open up Cascade Conference play.  Tip with the Mountaineers is set for 7:30 p.m. at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

Box Score

SEATTLE – Taking on their third NCAA Division I opponent in eight days, the Evergreen Geoducks fell to the Seattle Redhawks, 100-59, in an exhibition men’s basketball game on Saturday night at KeyArena in Seattle.

The Geoducks kept it tight with the Redhawks early in the first half as the two teams were tied at six with 15:21 to go but Seattle came out of the first media timeout on fire, going on a 21-0 run before Evergreen would hit another basket.  SU continued to push the pace as the Redhawks would take a 49-26 lead into the halftime break.

In the second half, the Redhawks continued to pull away but the Geoducks never stopped battling, improving their second half point production by seven points  as Seattle earned the 100-59 win over Evergreen.  It was the third straight year that the two squads met and the third straight win for SU.

Evergreen was led by 17 points off the bench from KJ Hong (Federal Way, Wash./Decatur HS/Shoreline CC).  Kwame Awadjie (Tacoma, Wash./Spanaway Lake HS) added 10 points.  The Geoduck starters struggled against the bigger SU team, combining for just 15 points as Evergreen shot 33.9% from the field, making 19-of-56 attempts in the former NBA arena.

Seattle was led by 19 points each from Isiah Umpig and Deshaun  Sunderhaus.  William Powell added 14 points while Shore Adenekan added 10 points.  Former Washington Husky Clarence Trent was held to just four points in the counting game for SU.  The Redhawks shot 43.5% from the field but dominated the glass, outrebounding Evergreen 68 to 28.

The Geoducks return back to NAIA competition on Nov. 24 when they play host to Cal Maritime.  Tip with the Keelhaulers is set for 2 p.m. at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

Box Score

TACOMA, Wash. – Senior Kyle Calhoun (Seattle, Wash./Hazen HS/Marshalltown CC) put up 24 points but the Evergreen Geoducks couldn’t pick up the win, falling to the Puget Sound Loggers, 71-58, in  a non-conference men’s basketball game on Friday night at Memorial Fieldhouse in Tacoma, Wash.

In the first half, it was the Loggers who came out on fire, scoring the first five points before Bryce Phillip (Spanaway, Wash./Bethel HS/Green River CC) scored for the Geoducks.  Evergreen fought back to tie the game early but a 12-3 run gave UPS a nine-point lead with 13:30 to go in the opening half.  The Loggers continued to push the pace, using a layup with 9:30 to go to extend the lead into double-digits and Puget Sound would keep the lead, taking a 38-24 lead into the break.

In the second half, the two teams were even most of the way but the early deficit proved too much to overcome.  The Geoducks used a three-ball by Calhoun with 16:20 left to go to cut the Logger lead to 10 but they would never get any closer, falling 71-58 in the non-conference matchup.

Evergreen was led by the 24 points from Calhoun, who was nine-of-15 from the field, including five-of-seven from the three-point line.  Cameron Faison (Atlanta, Ga./Foster HS/West Valley College) added eight as the Geoducks next leading scorer.  The green and white shot just 39.6% from the field, making 21-of-53 attempts.

Puget Sound was led by 24 points from Rex Nelson.  Keith Shattuck came off the bench to score 11 while Nick Holden finished with 10 points for the Loggers.  UPS had a slight advantage in rebounding, bringing down 38 boards compared with 36 for Evergreen.

The Geoducks play their third Division I opponent of the season on Saturday night when they head up to Seattle to take on WAC member Seattle University in an exhibition.  Tip with the Redhawks is set for 7 p.m. at KeyArena.

Box Score