With five games left on the schedule this season, the Portland State men’s basketball team won the 2012–13 Dam Cup on Monday night, defeating the Eastern Washington University Eagles 89-80 and moving within two wins of making it into the Big Sky Conference tournament. Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard was in attendance at the Stott Center to witness the Vikings’ second consecutive win following an eight-game losing streak.
Men’s basketball wins Dam Cup
With five games left on the schedule this season, the Portland State men’s basketball team won the 2012–13 Dam Cup on Monday night, defeating the Eastern Washington University Eagles 89-80 and moving within two wins of making it into the Big Sky Conference tournament. Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard was in attendance at the Stott Center to witness the Vikings’ second consecutive win following an eight-game losing streak.
Portland State started the game in full swing, rolling out to an 8-0 lead in the first couple of minutes. Eastern Washington was able to fight back to within four points midway through the first half, but Portland State responded, stretching the lead back to 10. The effort was punctuated by a three-pointer from Michael Harthun and a block by Michael Harvey as time expired in the half, giving the Vikings a 12-point lead heading into the locker room. The team shot an astounding 66 percent from the field in the first half and held their opponents to just 36 percent.
The Eagles gained some momentum in the second by imposing their will on defense and pushing the Vikings into costly turnovers, leading to a 22-5 Eastern Washington run that gave them the lead. The Vikings were able to regain their footing and build another 10-point advantage, forcing the Eagles into fouling over the last few minutes to stop the clock and try to close the gap. The Vikings shot 82 percent from the free-throw line in the second half, putting an end to the comeback effort. Portland State finished the game shooting 53 percent from the field and held the Eagles to 44 percent.
“It’s hard to sustain that for 40 minutes,” head coach Tyler Geving said after the game. “We had a little lull there, but the kids bounced back, took the lead back and played well down the stretch.”
From here, the Vikings get ready for a nonconference matchup with the University of California, Riverside on Saturday at the Stott Center, before moving on to four critical conference games to close out the regular season.
