Men's basketball looks to bury the Eagles on Saturday night

GAME DAY NOTES: at Eastern Washington

GAME DETAILS
Date: Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009
Tip: 8:05 p.m. (MT)
Location: Cheney, Wash.
   Venue: Reese Court (6,000)
Television: BigSkyTV.org
   Play-by-play: Larry Weir
   Analyst: N/A
   Sideline: N/A
Radio: 1310 KFKA (Greeley)
   Play-by-play: Troy Coverdale
   Web stream: 1310KFKA.com
Live stats: goeags.cstv.com
Series: EWU, 3-2
   Last: NC, 75-68 (1-15-09)

SOME STORY LINES

• Like it did Thursday against Portland State, Northern Colorado enters tonight’s game in complete control of its postseason fate. At 6-7 in the league, the Bears can clinch their first BSC berth with two wins in its final four games.

• On the other hand, Eastern Washington is in must-win mode tonight. The Eagles have already lost nine BSC games, so they can’t lose again, and they’ll need some help along the way, too. The Bears would bury Eastern with a win tonight.

• Eastern Washington junior Benny Valentine erupted for a game-high 31 points the last time these teams met (a 75-68 NC victory in Greeley.) Only one player (WSU’s Kellen McCoy, 25) has scored more than 20 pts. against the Bears since.

• The Bears finished 4-4 in February last season, which was the school’s first non-losing February since going 5-4 in February 1992. Northern Colorado is 3-2 this February following its 77-74 defeat Thursday, Feb. 19, against Portland St.

SERIES HISTORY
OVERALL: EWU, 3-2
HOME: NC, 2-1
AWAY: EWU, 2-0
NEUTRAL: N/A

ABOUT THE EAGLES

• Like Portland State on Thursday, Eastern Washington, which won 11 BSC games last season, enters tonight a loser of four of six. Looking closer, the Eagles have won just twice in their last 10 contests -- including a 75-68 loss to the Bears in Greeley.
  

• Junior Benny Valentine, who poured in 31 points against the Bears in that previous meeting, currently ranks third in the Big Sky Conference in per-game scoring (15.6), fourth in assists per game (3.15) and fifth in steals (1.38).

• Valentine and junior Brandon Moore (10.8 ppg) are the only Eagles averaging in double figures in scoring. Moore is also second in the conference in rebounding per game (6.8).