Eastern Washington surrenders 23-point second-half lead in loss to South Dakota State

From staff reports

BROOKINGS, S.D. – Up by 23 points with just under 9 minutes to go, Eastern Washington lost 77-76 to South Dakota State on Saturday in nonconference men’s basketball play at Frost Arena.

The Jackrabbits (4-7 overall) shot 60.8% in the second half and made all 15 of their free-throw attempts overall as they surged ahead on a jump shot by Zeke Mayo with 2 seconds remaining.

That shot came after EWU sophomore Casey Jones missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with the Eagles (4-6) ahead by a point. A sophomore guard, Mayo finished with a game-high 30 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field.

Eastern led 41-29 at half and extended its lead to 23 for the first time with 12:27 left, when Cedric Coward hit a 3-pointer. About 4 minutes later, Ethan Price made a 3 to restore the 23-point advantage after the Jackrabbits had cut the deficit to 17.

But SDSU kept chipping away. A pair of free throws by Mayo with 2:55 remaining cut the Eagles’ lead to 74-65. A 3-pointer by Matt Mims made it 76-73 with 57 seconds left. Eastern missed its final shot from the field and the Jones free-throw attempt. That gave the Jackrabbits opportunities to score the game’s last two baskets.

Five Eastern players scored in double digits, led by sophomore Ethan Price’s 16 on 6-of-9 shooting – including a 3-for-4 effort from 3-point range. Jones scored 15 points and made 3 of 6 3-point attempts, all career bests. EWU shot 44.8% from the field and made 11 of 32 3-point attempts.

The Eagles play at Texas Tech (6-2) on Tuesday before returning home to play UC Davis (6-3) on Saturday .