Evergreen blocks eight shots in losing effort
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Returning to conference play for the final time in 2010, The Evergreen State College Geoducks put a scare in the 11th-ranked Northwest University Eagles before the visitors held on for the 87-71 win in a Cascade College Conference men’s basketball game on Thursday night at the CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.
The battle began to see-saw from the very beginning as Evergreen opened up the contest with seven straight points before the Eagles answered with an 11-0 run of their own to take the lead. Northwest took their biggest lead of the half with just over nine minutes left to play as they held a nine-point advantage, 24-15. The Geoducks battled back, pulling within two points with 1:49 left on the board. Northwest added one more bucket as the Eagles held the 32-28 lead into the break.
In the first half, the Geoducks were led by eight points from Michael Brumsey (Tacoma, Wash./South Puget Sound CC). Josh Troyer (Vancouver, Wash./Lower Columbia CC) and Marice Tolliver (Tacoma, Wash./Lower Columbia CC) each added six points as Evergreen kept the contest close.
The Geoducks retook the lead just 48 seconds into the second half as Johnny Sarysz (Seattle, Wash./South Puget Sound CC) hit a three-pointer to give Evergreen a 33-32 lead. After Northwest took the advantage, the two teams continued to battle as the Geoducks kept it tight. The Eagles finally soared on a 13-2 run to pull ahead by double-digits and force Evergreen to play from behind the rest of the contest. The Geoducks continued to battle before falling 87-71.
Evergreen was led by 19 points from freshman Mikey Hope (Tacoma, Wash./Wilson HS). Brumsey finished with 14 points on the night while Troyer chipped in 13 in the losing effort. Tolliver added 10 off the bench after missing Tuesday night’s game due to illness. The Geoducks were strong on defensive, forcing 20 turnovers and blocking eight Northwest shots.
Northwest was led by 18 points each from Jordan Call and Greg George, with the duo adding nine and eight rebounds respectively. Greg Peters recorded the double-double for the Eagles, scoring 15 and bringing down 12 boards while Rich Skillman scored 11 to round out the NU players in double-digit scoring.
The Geoducks hit the road next week, traveling south for a pair of conference games at Southern Oregon on Friday and Oregon Tech on Saturday.
GAME NOTES: Start of game was delayed eight minutes due to travel issues with the officials…Northwest ranked 11th in the latest NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Top 25 poll
Game Stats
Upcoming Games
- January 7 – Fri @ Southern Oregon University 5:30pm
- January 8 – Sat @ Oregon Tech 5:30pm
