KIRKLAND, Wash. – A 21-point performance by senior forward Marice Tolliver (Tacoma, Wash./Lower Columbia College) wasn’t enough to keep the Evergreen Geoducks in the game as the 13th-ranked Northwest Eagles cruised to a 93-56 win in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Saturday night at NU Pavilion in Kirkland, Wash.
The undefeated Eagles (9-0, 1-0 CCC) took the initial lead off a three-pointer by Ahmaad Cook but the Geoducks (1-8, 0-1 CCC) showed that they came with some fight as Evergreen took the lead with 15:46 left to go in the first half on a jumper by Tolliver. The Eagles tied things up at 23 all with 8:19 left to go in the first period and Northwest took control from that point on, ending the half on a 22-8 run that gave NU the 45-31 halftime lead.
In the second half, Northwest continued to pile it on as the Eagle lead broke into the 20s on a three-ball by Jordan Call with 17:07 left to go. The Eagle advantage hit 30 with 10:03 left on the clock as Evergreen shot just 25.0% in the second half, making just eight of 32 attempts. On the other end, Northwest shot 44.4% from the field in the final half as they outscored Evergreen, 48-25, in the second period to take the 93-56 win and remain perfect on the season.
Evergreen was led by the 21 points from Tolliver, who also added seven rebounds, three assists and three steals on the game. The Geoducks made eight three-pointers on the night but chucked it up 30 times from behind the arc to finish with a 26.7% shooting percentage from long range.
Northwest was led by 18 points from Call. Michael Greene added 17 points and 10 rebounds to collect the double-double while Cook chalked up 16 points in the win. Jason Waltman rounded out the double-digit scorers while Nemanja Grujicic brought down a game-high 14 rebounds as the Eagles held a 58-33 advantage on the glass.
The Geoducks wrap up the non-conference portion of their schedule on Wednesday night when they play host to Puget Sound in the second game of a doubleheader with the Loggers. Evergreen lost to UPS, 88-76, on Nov. 25 at the PLU Thanksgiving Classic in Parkland, Wash. Tip-off with Puget Sound this time around is set for 8 p.m.
