Eagles Stay Strong for 103-83 Win Over Corban
KIRKLAND – The second-half swoon that plagued the injury-ravaged Eagles the last two games was a no-show Saturday as Northwest took a 103-83 victory over Corban.
The Eagles led by as many as 15 in the first half when they shot 64.5 percent from the field, including eight of 13 from three-point range (61.5 percent). Northwest led 53-43 at the half and had three players – Christian Hakilimali, Ryan Ricks and Hussayn Ford in double-figures in scoring.
Instead of losing steam, the Eagles added to the lead in the second half and withstood a furious three-point onslaught by the Warriors.
After Corban got within eight points at the 17:13 mark, Dejwan Walker scored five points in an 11-2 NU run to bulk up the lead to 68-51 with 14:41 to play.
CU never got closer than 11 points, despite knocking down four straight three-pointers, as the Eagles moved the ball well on the offensive end and answered nearly every scoring trip. The stretch run included an alley-oop from Walker to Ford and a dunk by Walker after the guard had outworked defenders for a loose ball near mid-court.
“I thought we did a good job working together and executing our offense,” said NU Head Coach Jeff Drinkwine. “We didn’t look fatigued and we actually looked like we were enjoying playing together. When you have 24 assists, you’re playing unselfishly and moving the ball well. We’re working through the adversity of our injuries. And we get to do it all over again next week.”
Northwest shot 60 percent from the field and knocked down 56.3 percent of its three-pointers (9-16).
Ford led the Eagles with 26 points and 14 rebounds. Hakilimali added 22 points and six assists, followed by Ricks and Walker with 16 points apiece.
Beau Roggenbach got a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead Corban.
The Eagles, now 14-6 overall and 9-2 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference, get back to action next weekend with 7:30 p.m. games at Oregon Tech Friday and Southern Oregon Saturday.