By Cory McKendrick, USU Eastern Sports Information Contributor
The Utah State University Eastern men’s basketball team traveled to Ephraim, home of the Snow College Badgers, for Thursday night Scenic West Athletic Conference basketball. The 0-1 Eagles were the conference opener for the Badgers, who had a first week bye.
In the last three minutes of the first half, with the game tied at 27 apiece, the Eagle offense went cold and the Badgers went on an 8-0 run, giving Snow a 35-27 lead entering the break. The Eagles came storming back out of the half with a 7-1 run of their own to bring them back within one, 36-35.
In the middle of the second half, the Badgers started to run away with the lead. With some excellent outside shooting by the Badgers and missed opportunities from the Eagles, Snow extended its lead to double digits. The big challenge for USU Eastern in the game was ball security. The team was plagued with 19 turnovers in the game.
At the final horn, the score was 71- 56 in favor of Snow College. Gabriel Olivrira and Donaval Avila Jr. both had double-digit scoring for the Eagles with 11 and 10, respectively. Brayden Johnson of Snow led all scorers with 16.
With the game, Snow College improved to 1-0 in conference while the Eagles fell to 0-2. USUE will take the court in their first home contest of the season as they host the Salt Lake Community College Bruins on Thursday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. in the BDAC.