Jim Hayford, Eastern Washington men’s basketball look to build on success

Big Sky Conference basketball coaches will be a bit nervous this spring signing period, wondering what – or who – Jim Hayford will come up with next.

Eastern Washington has won 66 games – an average of 22 a year – during the last three years partly because of Hayford’s ability to identify and attract under-the-radar gems.

You’ve heard of them: Tyler Harvey, Venky Jois, Austin McBroom and Jacob Wiley.

Picked in the preseason polls to finish seventh, Hayford’s Eagles finished 22-12 overall and a game out of first place. A big reason was Wiley’s ascension from NAIA star to Big Sky Player of the Year.

“Twenty-two wins – if that’s an average season, we’ll take it right now,” Hayford said, reflecting on only the third 20-plus-win in Eastern’s 32 years as a Division I school.

The Eagles went 13-5 in the Big Sky before falling to Weber State in the tournament semifinals and to Wyoming in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational.

For that, Hayford credits his players and staff but also a “loyal bunch of donors” who have made it possible to raise money for travel, recruiting, assistants’ salaries and much more.

So who’s next? Hayford isn’t saying, but don’t be surprised if the Eagles overachieve again next year.

Now for the next step: staying in the upper tier of the Big Sky despite the loss of Wiley and career 3-point shooting leader Felix Von Hofe.

The biggest key next year is forward Bogdan Bliznyuk, who returns for his senior year on the heels of a do-everything season that saw him average 20.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and four assists – all while assuming most of the ball-handling chores.

“The amount of time the ball was with him was unbelievable,” said Hayford, who likened Bliznyuk to “a running back who gets 400 carries.”

However, the key to next year will be developing the supporting cast. Last year, the Eagles got 64 percent of their scoring from Bliznyuk and Wiley. That percentage probably needs to drop next year, and Hayford is optimistic.

In the frontcourt, Mason Peatling (4.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg) and Jesse Hunt (3.4 ppg and 2.2 rpg) played double-digit minutes but need to boost their productivity.

“If we can get our bigs to be more productive outside shooters, that will be important,” Hayford said.

Hayford got production from four guards, all of whom return. Sir Washington, a senior next year, is coming off season of highs and lows that evened out to 6.6 points a game but only a 37.7 percent field-goal average.

“He needs to be more consistent, but some games he looked as good as any guard in the Big Sky,” Hayford said.

Eastern got a spark off the bench from Ty Gibson (5.2 points and 48.5 percent shooting from long range) and Cody Benzel (4.6 ppg and 44.8 percent from 3).

Another key will be the growth of point guard Luka Vulikic, who started 22 games but had just a 0.78 turnover-to-assist ratio. That’s OK, because keeping the ball in Bliznyuk’s hands was a sound tactic last year.

In particular, isolation plays to Bliznyuk were the best weapon in Eastern’s half-court arsenal.

“Opponents know what’s coming, but they couldn’t stop it,” Hayford said.

The biggest progress came on defense, as Eastern held Big Sky opponents to a league-best 42.2 field-goal percentage.

Hayford also sees potential in the next group of recruits. They include 6-foot-9 forward Tanner Groves from Spokane’s Shadle Park High School; 6-6 forward Brendan Howard, a Great Falls product who was twice named Montana’s Gatorade Player of the Year; Australian Jack Perry, a 6-2 guard who joins a group of five Aussies on EWU’s roster; and 6-7 guard/forward Kim Aiken, an All-CIF selection from East Valley High School in Redlands, Calif.

In the meantime, Hayford and his staff will be out recruiting in Australia, Serbia and points in between.

With one scholarship to give, Hayford said he’s looking for a frontcourt player or an impact transfer at any position.

Whoever it is, the rest of the Big Sky will be paying attention.