Photo by Jeff Barrett
By Jordan Buscarini, KOAL Drive Time Sports
The USU Eastern men’s basketball team took to the court on Wednesday night as part of Fan Appreciation Night and they welcomed the College of Southern Idaho to the Bunnell-Dmitrich Athletic Center. This was a hard-fought contest from beginning to end, but with the crowd behind them, USU Eastern earned the 64-60 win.
With free admission, food, snacks and giveaways, the crowd was ready for more action after the Lady Eagles defeated the CSI ladies, the No. 5 team in the country. The men would take to the floor hoping to duplicate their success.
The first half was played almost even as the Eagles scored first on an Isaac Castagnetto jumper. CSI stayed within striking distance until about the 15:00 mark when they took a slim one-point lead off a three-pointer from Madit Lueeth for the first and last time in the contest.
Heading into the second half, USU Eastern methodically added to its lead and kept CSI at arm’s length with their defense. Obenga Olubi pushed the Eagles’ lead to 16 with just under 13:00 left to go. It was at this point that CSI picked up its intensity and started to chop away at the USU Eastern lead.
The CSI comeback cut the Eagles’ lead to two points after a three-pointer by Chris James with just 0:51 left on the clock. After time-outs by both teams, a missed three-point attempt brought CSI’s rally to an end after a rebound by Castagnetto and a foul, it was a matter of making sure both free throws fell, putting the score at 64-60 and sealing the victory.
Kurt Wegscheider led all scorers with 16, pulling down three rebounds and grabbing three steals along the way. Wegscheider has been averaging just over 14 points per game for the Eagles this season.
Payton Falslev and Castagnetto both went for 12 with five boards while BJ Davis handed out eight assists for the Eagles in the win.