2017–18 Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball team

American college basketball season

2017–18 Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball
CBI, First round
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record20–15 (13–5 Big Sky)
Head coach
  • Shantay Legans (1st season)
Associate head coachNick Booker
Assistant coaches
  • David Riley
  • Bobby Suarez
Home arenaReese Court
Seasons
2017–18 Big Sky men's basketball standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Montana † 16 – 2   .889 26 – 8   .765
Idaho 14 – 4   .778 22 – 9   .710
Weber State 13 – 5   .722 20 – 11   .645
Eastern Washington 13 – 5   .722 20 – 15   .571
Northern Colorado 11 – 7   .611 26 – 12   .684
Idaho State 9 – 9   .500 14 – 16   .467
Portland State 9 – 9   .500 20 – 14   .588
Montana State 6 – 12   .333 13 – 19   .406
North Dakota 6 – 12   .333 12 – 20   .375
Southern Utah 5 – 13   .278 13 – 19   .406
Sacramento State 4 – 14   .222 7 – 25   .219
Northern Arizona 2 – 16   .111 5 – 27   .156
† Conference tournament winner

The 2017–18 Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball team represented Eastern Washington University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles were led by first-year head coach Shantay Legans and played their home games at Reese Court in Cheney, Washington as members of the Big Sky Conference. They finished the season 20–15, 13–5 in Big Sky play to finish in a tie for third place. At the Big Sky tournament they defeated Portland State and Southern Utah to advance to the championship game where they lost to Montana. They were invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they lost in the first round to Utah Valley.

Previous season

The Eagles finished the 2016–17 season 22–12, 13–5 in Big Sky play to finish in second place. As the No. 2 seed in the Big Sky tournament, they defeated Sacramento State in the quarterfinals before losing to Weber State in the semifinals. They were invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they lost in the first round to Wyoming.

On March 29, 2017, head coach Jim Hayford left Eastern Washington to take the head coaching job at in-state rival Seattle and was replaced by top assistant Shantay Legans.[1]

Offseason

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Julian Harrell 0 G 6'5" 195 RS Senior Los Angeles, CA Graduated
Michael Wearne 5 G 6'2" 175 Freshman Croydon, Australia Transferred
Jacob Wiley 24 F 6'7" 220 RS Senior Newport, WA Graduated/Went undrafted in 2017 NBA draft
Geremy McKay 40 F 6'7" 225 RS Sophomore Melbourne, Australia Transferred
Mario Soto 42 G 6'6" 205 RS Sophomore Irvine, CA Walk-on; didn't return
Felix Von Hofe 44 F 6'5" 200 Senior Melbourne, Australia Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Tyler Kidd 0 G 5'11" Junior Seattle, WA Junior college transferred from Skagit Valley College.
Benas Griciūnas 15 C 7'0" 244 RS Junior Šilutė, Lithuania Transferred from Charlotte. Was eligible to play immediately since Griciūnas graduated from Charlotte.
Steven Beo 25 G 6'3" 180 Sophomore Richland, WA Transferred from BYU. Under NCAA transfer rules, Beo was required to sit out the 2017–18 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.

2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Brendan Howard
SF 		Great Falls, MT Great Falls High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sep 14, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 0
Tanner Groves
PF 		Spokane, WA Shadle Park High School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) N/A Oct 26, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 0
Jack Perry
SG 		Melbourne, Australia Camberwell Grammar School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 0
Kim Aiken
SF 		Redlands, CA East Valley High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 0
Richard Polanco
SF 		San Diego, CA Army and Navy Academy 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg)  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 0
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 4, 2017.

Preseason

In separate preseason polls of league coaches and media, the Eagles were picked to finish in seventh place (coaches) and sixth place (media) in the Big Sky.[2] Senior forward Bogdan Bliznyuk was named to the preseason All-Big Sky team.[3]

Roster

2017–18 Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Tyler Kidd Current redshirt 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr O'Dea HS
Skagit Valley College 		Seattle, Washington
G 2 Ty Gibson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Issaquah HS Issaquah, Washington
G 4 Sir Washington 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Sr Clark HS Las Vegas, Nevada
F 5 Richard Polanco 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr Army and Navy Academy Santiago de los Caballeros, DR
G 10 Jacob Davison 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Fr Cantwell-Sacred Heart HS Montebello, California
G 11 Jack Perry 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Camberwell Grammar School Melbourne, Australia
G 12 Grant Gibb (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS So Mark Morris HS Longview, Washington
G 13 Luka Vulikić 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So None Belgrade, Serbia
F 14 Mason Peatling 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Beaconhills College HS Melbourne, Australia
C 15 Benas Griciūnas 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 244 lb (111 kg) RS Sr Findlay Prep
Auburn/Charlotte 		Šilutė, Lithuania
G 20 Cody Benzel (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Jr Ferris HS Spokane, Washington
F 23 Brendan Howard 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr Great Falls HS Great Falls, Montana
G/F 24 Kim Aiken 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr East Valley HS Redlands, California
G 25 Steven Beo (I) Current redshirt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Richland HS
BYU 		Richland, Washington
F 32 Bogdan Bliznyuk (C) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Todd Beamer HS Lutsk, Ukraine
F 34 Jesse Hunt 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Sir Francis Drake HS Geraldton, Australia
F 35 Tanner Groves Current redshirt 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Fr Shadle Park HS Spokane, Washington
G 42 Joshua Thomas 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Fr Central Valley HS Spokane, Washington
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Oct 29, 2017*
5:00 pm 		at Portland
Hurricane Maria relief charity game 		W 76–70 
Chiles Center (500)
Portland, OR
Non-conference regular season
Nov 10, 2017*
1:05 pm 		Walla Walla W 82–61  1–0
 Reese Court 
Cheney, WA
Nov 12, 2017*
5:00 pm, P12N 		at Washington L 69–79  1–1
 Alaska Airlines Arena (5,609)
Seattle, WA
Nov 14, 2017*
8:00 pm, P12N 		at Stanford W 67–61  2–1
 Maples Pavilion (2,799)
Stanford, CA
Nov 17, 2017*
7:00 pm 		at UNLV
MGM Resorts Main Event campus-site game 		L 76–91  2–2
 Thomas & Mack Center (8,900)
Paradise, NV
Nov 20, 2017*
1:30 pm 		vs. Georgia State
MGM Resorts Main Event Middleweight semifinals 		L 50–68  2–3
 T-Mobile Arena 
Paradise, NV
Nov 22, 2017*
11:00 am 		vs. Eastern Kentucky
MGM Resorts Main Event Middleweight 3rd place game 		W 83–62  3–3
 T-Mobile Arena 
Paradise, NV
Nov 24, 2017*
5:00 pm, P12N 		at Utah
MGM Resorts Main Event campus-site game 		L 69–85  3–4
 Jon M. Huntsman Center (13,264)
Salt Lake City, UT
Dec 3, 2017*
1:00 pm 		at Seattle L 65–84  3–5
 KeyArena (1,487)
Seattle, WA
Dec 7, 2017*
7:00 pm 		at San Francisco L 71–81  3–6
 War Memorial Gymnasium (1,137)
San Francisco, CA
Dec 10, 2017*
11:00 am, ESPN3 		at South Dakota L 73–75  3–7
 Sanford Coyote Sports Center (1,998)
Vermillion, SD
Dec 12, 2017*
6:00 pm 		at Wyoming L 88–93 OT 3–8
 Arena-Auditorium (4,363)
Laramie, WY
Dec 17, 2017*
2:05 pm 		Cal State Northridge W 86–58  4–8
 Reese Court (1,279)
Cheney, WA
Dec 20, 2017*
6:05 pm 		Providence (MT) W 94–66  5–8
 Reese Court (1,056)
Cheney, WA
Big Sky regular season
Dec 29, 2017
6:00 pm 		at Northern Colorado L 75–88  5–9
(0–1) 		Bank of Colorado Arena (1,047)
Greeley, CO
Dec 31, 2017
2:00 pm 		at North Dakota W 77–64  6–9
(1–1) 		Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (1,548)
Grand Forks, ND
Jan 4, 2018
6:05 pm, SWX 		Portland State W 81–74  7–9
(2–1) 		Reese Court (1,375)
Cheney, WA
Jan 6, 2018
2:05 pm 		Sacramento State W 82–67  8–9
(3–1) 		Reese Court (1,464)
Cheney, WA
Jan 12, 2018
7:30 pm, SWX 		Idaho L 51–58  8–10
(3–2) 		Reese Court (2,334)
Cheney, WA
Jan 18, 2018
5:30 pm 		at Northern Arizona W 81–76  9–10
(4–2) 		Walkup Skydome (1,017)
Flagstaff, AZ
Jan 20, 2018
11:30 am 		at Southern Utah L 62–66 OT 9–11
(4–3) 		America First Events Center (2,229)
Cedar City, UT
Jan 25, 2018
6:05 pm 		North Dakota W 95–71  10–11
(5–3) 		Reese Court (1,679)
Cheney, WA
Jan 27, 2018
2:05 pm, ELVN 		Northern Colorado W 67–65  11–11
(6–3) 		Reese Court (1,674)
Cheney, WA
Feb 1, 2018
7:05 pm 		at Sacrmento State W 74–54  12–11
(7–3) 		Hornets Nest (568)
Sacramento, CA
Feb 3, 2018
1:00 pm 		at Portland State L 81–94  12–12
(7–4) 		Pamplin Sports Center (527)
Portland, OR
Feb 9, 2018
7:30 pm, SWX 		at Idaho L 64–66  12–13
(7–5) 		Cowan Spectrum (3,192)
Moscow, ID
Feb 15, 2018
6:05 pm 		Montana W 74–65  13–13
(8–5) 		Reese Court (2,354)
Cheney, WA
Feb 17, 2018
2:05 pm, ELVN 		Montana State W 84–79  14–13
(9–5) 		Reese Court (1,804)
Cheney, WA
Feb 22, 2018
6:00 pm 		at Weber State W 75–70  15–13
(10–5) 		Dee Events Center (6,425)
Ogden, UT
Feb 24, 2018
6:00 pm 		at Idaho State W 74–69  16–13
(11–5) 		Reed Gym (1,911)
Pocatello, ID
Mar 1, 2018
6:05 pm 		Southern Utah W 74–51  17–13
(12–5) 		Reese Court (1,637)
Cheney, WA
Mar 3, 2018
2:05 pm 		Northern Arizona W 85–68  18–13
(13–5) 		Reese Court (2,032)
Cheney, WA
Big Sky tournament
Mar 8, 2018
8:05 pm, ELVN 		(3) (6) Portland State
Quarterfinals 		W 78–72  19–13
 Reno Events Center (1,078)
Reno, NV
Mar 9, 2018
8:05 pm, ELVN 		(3) (10) Southern Utah
Semifinals 		W 82–70  20–13
 Reno Events Center (1,236)
Reno, NV
Mar 10, 2018
5:05 pm, ESPNU 		(3) (1) Montana
Championship game 		L 65–82  20–14
 Reno Events Center (1,378)
Reno, NV
CBI
Mar 13, 2018*
6:00 pm 		at Utah Valley
First round 		L 65–87  20–15
 UCCU Center (997)
Orem, UT
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Pacific Time.

Source[4][5]

See also

References

  1. ^ Allen, Jim (March 29, 2017). "Jim Hayford leaves Eastern Washington for Seattle U.; top assistant Shantay Legans named new basketball coach". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  2. ^ "Idaho Favored to win Big Sky Men's Basketball Championship". Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  3. ^ "Hall Recognized as Preseason MVP". Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  4. ^ "2021-22 Eastern Washington Eagles Schedule".
  5. ^ "EWU Athletics - 2017-18 Men's Basketball Schedule (as of August 28, 2017)". www.goeags.com. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
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