Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Jacob Groves dives for a loose ball in front of Kansas guard Marcus Garrett in the Eagles NCAA tournament first-round game with the Jayhawks.
INDIANAPOLIS – A 25-7 stretch of the second half by the Kansas Jayhawks drowned out Eastern Washington's chances in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament March 20.
The No. 13 seeded Eagles, who led right from the tip 9-0 and by 10 points 52-42 on a Tanner Groves bucket with 17:58 left - fell to No. 4 Kansas 93-84. The Eagles led for the most time, 20:47 to 18:07, but the No. 4 seeded Jayhawks did so when it counted most.
Tanner Groves had a career-high 35 points while Jacob Groves also had career highs with 23 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Michael Meadows, scored 12 points and had a career-high eight assists and were the only Eagles in double figures.
While the Eagles held a slim edge in field goal shooting, 50-48 and were equal on the boards with 33 each, the difference came in the Jayhawks' 10-5 edge in offensive rebounds and Eastern committing 13 turnovers to Kansas' six. That gave the Jayhawks a 13-2 advantage in second-chance points and a 12-7 edge in points off turnovers.
"I don't believe in moral victories, but today was one of those times where I told the team this was a moral victory for them," Shantay Legans, now former Eastern head coach, said. "They played amazing, great and hard, and played toe-to-toe with one of the best programs in the country."
On March 22 it was announced that Legans, who spent four seasons as EWU head coach and 12 with the program, had accepted an offer to become the new head coach of University of Portland Pilots.
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