'Cats drop home game 80-78 to Eastern Washington

OGDEN - Weber State dropped its first home game of the season as Eastern Washington knocked off the Wildcats 80-78 Thursday night at the Dee Events Center.

Weber State shot 56 percent from the field in the first half and made eight 3-pointers, but the Wildcats were 3 of 15 from 3-point range in the second half and shot 33 percent from the field in the half.

WSU led by as many as 13 points midway through the first half and held a 47-39 lead at halftime.

The Eagles got off to a fast start in the second half and had a 12-0 run to regain the lead. All total, the Eagles had a 20-4 run and led 61-54 with 13:12 to play.

Weber State regained the lead with 3:52 to play at 72-71. The game was tied four times in the final four minutes.

For the game, Eastern Washington shot 53 percent from the field, compared to 45 percent for the Wildcats. WSU made 11 3-pointers and held the Eagles to six but EWU outrebounded the 'Cats 31-28 and had 36 points in the paint.

Steven Verplancken led the Wildcats with 16 points and made three 3-pointers.

Dillon Jones had his 11th double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds, to go along with four assists and two steals. Jones became the third player in Weber State history and the seventh player in Big Sky Conference history to reach 1,000 career rebounds. He also moved into a tie for first in WSU history in career steals. He has 178 steals, which is tied with Eddie Gill for the most in school history

Viljami Vartiainen added 11 points, Dyson Koehler had nine, and Alex Tew and Blaise Threatt each had eight.

Eastern Washington has now won six-straight games and improved to 10-7 overall and 4-0 in Big Sky play.

Weber State has lost three-straight games for the first time this season and is 11-7 overall and 2-3 in conference play.

The 'Cats are right back home Saturday night to host Idaho at 7 p.m.

Saturday's game will be the 25th Anniversary celebration of the 1999 men's basketball team that won the Big Sky Tournament and defeated North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament. Harold "The Show" Arceneaux and Eddie "The Thrill" Gill will both be in attendance and will speak at halftime.

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Team Stats

Steven Verplancken

Dillon Jones

Viljami Vartiainen

Dyson Koehler

Players Mentioned

Dillon Jones

Dyson Koehler

Alex Tew

Blaise Threatt

Viljami Vartiainen

Steven Verplancken

Weber State University Athletics