WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Brittney Newcomb scored 18 of her 27 points in the first half to lead the Eastern Oregon University women’s basketball team to a 77-71 victory over Whitworth College, Friday night. The win for EOU is the 10th of the season.
Eastern Oregon jumped all over the Pirates in the first four and a half minutes of the game. EOU opened the contest on a 16-4 run, to take its largest lead of the game at 12 points. Brittney Newcomb and Taylor Riley led the way as they scored 11 of the 16 points for EOU.
After taking the double digit lead the Mountaineers continued to hold onto the comfortable lead. With EOU ahead, 27-18, Whitworth started to mount a comeback. The Pirates scored the next six points to cut the EOU lead down to three, 27-24.
Eastern Oregon looked to build the lead again but the Pirates continued to battle and after a three pointer by Kendra Lahue, the game was tied at 35. Lahue continued to stay hot for the Pirates as she hit two more three pointers in a 21 second span giving Whitworth a five point lead, 41-36.
However, the Mountaineers battled right back and went on a 10-0 run to close out the first half. EOU went into halftime holding a 46-41 lead.
Whitworth came out and scored the first eight points of the second half to grab an early three point lead in the half. However, the lead did not last long for the Pirates as Eastern Oregon answered right back and took a 50-49 lead.
After regaining the lead, the Mountaineers did not trail again in the contest. EOU continued to battle and grow its lead to four points, 55-51, after a Nyesha Joseph layup. However, the Pirates would not go away easily as a Kayla Johnson three pointer trimmed the lead to one point, 55-54.
After the Pirates cut the lead down to one, the Mountaineers grew the lead back to nine points, 72-63, after a Newcomb three pointer. After Newcomb’s three, both offenses went cold from the floor as both teams went four minutes without scoring a bucket.
The Mountaineers did not let the Pirates get closer than five points the rest of the game and EOU came away with a 77-71 victory over Whitworth.
Eastern Oregon returns to the Dec. 14 when they play Whitman College in the final game of the Kim Evanger Raney Classic. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.