SEATTLE, WA – Behind another strong defensive performance, Seattle U took down College of Idaho 78-54 on Thursday.
Recap:
This game was remarkably like the Redhawks last matchup when they took down Northwest on Sunday. The Eagles came out with energy that Seattle U just did not seem able to match in the opening minutes of the game. As time went on however, the Redhawks were able to not only rev up their intensity but were also able to apply a stifling defensive effort that led them to a huge victory.
This matchup was nearly a word for word repeat. The Yotes attacked the paint and their high energy threw off the offensive efforts of SU. In fact, the Redhawks did not take a lead in this one until the 12:46 mark in the first half. From there on out however, it became a game that the hosts thoroughly controlled.
Seattle held the Yotes to under 28 percent from the field in the second half and forced them into 18 turnovers in which the Redhawks converted into 19 points. The paint was also shut down in the second half. The Yotes had the height and size to compete with Seattle inside and did just that early in the game, but Seattle deployed a double team nearly every time an entry pass was sent into the post. This threw off the bigs of C of I and had them end up with only 22 points down low.
The one thing you could truly point to in this game and say the Redhawks did not do well is shoot the ball, which has become a theme early on in this season. Seattle shot just 44 percent from the field and a horrible 19 percent from deep.
In his postgame interview, coach Hayford said he is happy with the defense but that the shooting needs to improve. “Our defense was outstanding and has shown a lot of growth. But to score 78 points and still be shooting the ball so poorly, our guys need to get in the gym and really take it on themselves with pride because we’re a lot better shooters than we are showing.” Coach did go on to promise the fans at home that this group of guys can shoot the ball and shoot the ball well.
Player of the Game:
The obvious player to choose just looking at the box score would be Darrion Trammell who had 16 points on the night and added 6 assists. Our choice, however, will be Vasja Pandža. At the end of the first half Pandža subbed into the game and made a couple of silly fouls that led to the Yotes getting a 3 at the buzzer. Walking back to the locker room coach Hayford was talking with the freshman and was visibly upset with how the half ended.
That talk must have motivated him as he came out of the break on a tear. He scored all 13 of his points in the second half and had a pair of and 1 conversions from the field. He seemed to give the team a boost of energy to start the run that would eventually go on to be a blow out. You have to love when a player comes back stronger from their mistake.
What’s Next:
Seattle hits the road again as they have a date with the California Golden Bears on Tuesday the 22nd. This game was just recently added to the schedule and will be the third meeting with a Pac-12 school on the season. The last meeting between the Redhawks and Bears came back in 2018 when the Redhawks went down to Berkley and beat Cal 82-73. That was the first win in the series for SU and have a 1-2 record all time vs the Golden Bears.
That game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. tip off on Tuesday. You can watch the game live on the Pac-12 network or listen to the game on 770 KTTH AM or mynorthwest.com with Doug Greenwald on the call.
Final box score: https://goseattleu.com/boxscore.aspx?path=mbball&id=6239
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Russell is the Content Director for the Eli Network. He studied broadcast journalism at Eastern Oregon and North Dakota State University. Mostly covers soccer and basketball in the Seattle area and is the current play-by-play voice for Seattle Redhawks basketball. You can follow him @brussbrwn.
