FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (February 22, 2024) – NAU Basketball (13-15, 6-8) handed Eastern Washington (17-10, 11-3) their second-consecutive Big Sky loss with a late run in Flagstaff.
"Our guys played their hearts out, being down 71-64 at the under-four media and coming back on a 14-0 run says everything you need to know," head coach
Shane Burcar said. "It was a physical game, the guys showed some true toughness and the crowd was outstanding."
Picking up three-consecutive stops to start the game, NAU held the Eagles scoreless for nearly three minutes as Eastern Washington quickly recorded four fouls while the Jacks jumped out to an early 8-4 lead. By the first media timeout, coming late with 14:00 to go, the Lumberjacks held the 50.0 field goal percentage advantage to EWU's 37.5 percent.
Eastern Washington would find their first lead of the night with just under 13 minutes to play, as
Diego Campisano would quickly erase it with a corner three-pointer to put the Jacks back up. The first half would continue back-and-forth with both team's shooting 50.0 percent from the field by the final media timeout as EWU led 30-27. 24 of the Jacks first 27 points would come in the paint while 20 of the Eagles 30 would as well.
The final three minutes of the first half would see a 7-0 run from the Lumberjacks coming out of the final media timeout as Campisano quickly grabbed a steal to send the assist to
Oakland Fort, sparking the run with a layup.
Carson Basham tabbed 14 points with a layup of his own just before
Oakland Fort knocked his first three-pointer of the game while the Jacks would take a 35-34 lead into halftime.
NAU shot 50.0 percent from the field through the first half led by Basham's 14 while nearing a double-double in 17 minutes on the floor with a game-high nine rebounds. The Eagles 48.3 percent from the floor was led by Cedric Coward with 10 points while LuJuan Watts grabbed a team-high six boards. Both teams finished 2-9 from three-point range through the first frame. 12 of the Jacks first half points would come in second-chance fashion while holding the Eags to none as NAU was +6 on the boards.
With just under 15 minutes to go, the Eagles picked up a 5-0 run to break the 39-39 tie before the Lumberjacks grabbed one at the line followed by a Basham second-chance dunk, bringing the Jacks back within two.
Trent McLaughlin put NAU back on top with 13:29 to go with his first three of the night as
Jayden Jackson found him alone at the top of the arc.
While holding the Eags scoreless for a four-minute span, NAU grabbed the lead at the line as McLaughlin drained four straight after a EWU technical foul was charged to Ethan Price, and McLaughlin was then fouled on a layup.
The final three minutes of the game saw NAU's largest run of the game at 14-0, backed by a Fort steal and three-pointer with the Eagles committing back-to-back turnovers and Basham tabbing his sixth block to close out the game. Basham's six blocks mark his career-high as well as NAU's single-game record for the second time this season, while putting up a game-high 21 points and career-high 14 boards for his fifth double-double as a Lumberjack.
NAU shot 49.1 percent from the field, holding the Eagles to 44.8 percent and 29.2 percent from three-point range. The Lumberjacks shot 41.2 percent from three-point range with Fort knocking down three-of-four while Campisano finished 2-2 from beyond the arc. The Jacks won the rebound game at 37-30, while +7 on second-chance points and +7 on fast-breaks.
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