LA GRANDE, Ore. — Eastern Oregon University men’s basketball secured a victory over Bushnell, 93-86, on Saturday evening in Quinn Coliseum to wrap up the regular season. With the win EOU finishes the regular season at 12-16 overall and 11-11 in conference play. The loss drops Bushnell to 15-13 overall and 12-10 in CCC action.
EOU led the game from the start, outscoring Bushnell 44-38 in the first half and 49-48 in the second half. The Mountaineers were efficient inside on the evening shooting 54% from the field, but struggled from deep connecting on just 25% of their shots.
Garrett Hawkes led the Mountaineers with 26 points, followed by Jonny Hillman with 21 points. Preston Chandler added 14 points, while AJ Huddleston and Brennen Newsom contributed 9 and 11 points, respectively.
For Bushnell, Spencer Hoffman was the top scorer with 26 points, followed by Stevie Schlabach and Kaden Sand with 18 and 17 points, respectively. Hoffman and Schlabach together shot a scorching 69.5% while Kaden Sand was an impressive 9-10 from the stripe.
Hoffman also had a big night on the glass finishing with 15 rebounds.
Despite some standout performances on the Beacon’s side, Eastern controlled the game throughout. The Mountaineers capitalized on turnovers, scoring 17 points off Bushnell’s mistakes. They also dominated in the paint, scoring 42 points compared to Bushnell’s 36.
The game marked the end of the regular season as Eastern honored their four seniors, Preston Chandler, Jonny Hillman, AJ Huddleston, and Adam Orr.
EOU now shifts their sights to the postseason where they enter the CCC Tournament as the No. 7 seed. As the low seed EOU will hit the road to take on No. 2-seeded Lewis-Clark State College on Wednesday evening in Lewiston, Idaho. In their last matchup the Mounties fell to the Warriors 84-66 in Lewiston.
Follow all the Mountaineer postseason action at www.eousports.com.