After struggling in the first half, junior Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.) scored 22 of his career-high 26 points in the second half, helping Seattle University pull out a 75-70 victory over the Navy Midshipmen Sunday afternoon on the final day of the subregional of the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer, hosted by UC Irvine at the Bren Events Center.
Less than 24 hours after scoring 25 points against UC Irvine, Broussard committed four turnovers in the first half, but more than made up for those mistakes after halftime, finishing with 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 10-of-14 shooting from the free throw line. At one point in the second half, he scored nine straight points to turn a 51-47 deficit into a 56-51 lead for the Redhawks.
After a James Loupos three-pointer brought Navy within one at 57-56, Mark McLaughlin (Seattle, Wash.) hit a basket and Broussard converted a traditional three-point play to give Seattle U a 62-56 lead. The Midshipmen could not put a dent into the Redhawk lead, as Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) and McLaughlin combined to go 7-for-8 from the free throw line in the final minute to preserve the victory.
"This was a gut-check game for our guys today, especially playing their fourth game in five days," head coach Cameron Dollar said. "I am proud of the way they stuck together and continued playing with intensity throughout the game. We will build on this and continue to improve as we move along in the season."
Burrell played a solid game throughout, finishing with 19 points, two assists, and three steals, while McLaughlin notched his first career double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds, plus he dished out a team-high four assists. Both Garrett Lever (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Brandon Durham (Bremerton, Wash.) helped the Redhawks enjoy a significant rebounding edge with seven boards apiece.
Navy (1-5) jumped out to a 12-5 lead four minutes into the contest before Seattle U battled back, going on a 19-2 run over the next eight minutes, including four three-pointers, to pull ahead, 24-14. The Midshipmen took advantage of several Redhawk turnovers to work their way back into the game, going on their own 14-5 run to pull within one at 29-28. Seattle U used two baskets by Broussard in the final three minutes to extend its lead to 35-29 at halftime.
Jordan Sugars led the Midshipmen with 21 points and six rebounds, but shot only 2-of-11 from behind the three-point line. Loupos and Mark Veazey each finished with 12 points for Navy, which ended the game by shooting 37.5 percent (24-of-64) from the field, including 8-of-32 from behind the three-point line, and 73.7 percent (14-of-19) from the free throw line.
As a team, Seattle U shot a season-best 48 percent (24-of-50) from the field, including 5-of-12 from behind the three-point line, and 71 percent (22-of-31) from the free throw line. The Redhawks outrebounded their opponents, 46-29, but kept the Midshipmen in the game by committing 26 turnovers.
Seattle University (2-5) gets a much-needed week off from competition before heading to Sacramento, Calif., for a contest against UC Davis Saturday, Nov. 27, beginning at 1 p.m. Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., will broadcast the game live on 710 ESPN Seattle. The Redhawks' next home game is Monday, Nov. 29, against Montana State starting at 7:10 p.m. at KeyArena at Seattle Center, with tickets on sale through Ticketmaster.com.
