Peatling lifts E. Washington over Sacramento St. 77-76

CHENEY, Wash. (AP) — Mason Peatling had 28 points and 10 rebounds as Eastern Washington narrowly defeated Sacramento State 77-76 on Thursday night.

Peatling made 4 of 6 from 3-point range and had six assists.

Kim Aiken Jr. had 16 points for Eastern Washington (18-8, 11-4 Big Sky Conference). Jacob Davison added 12 points. Jack Perry had eight assists.

Aiken made back-to-back 3-pointers and, after Ethan Esposito hit 1-of-2 free throws, Peatling made a layup to give the Eagles a 72-69 lead with 3:35 to play. Izayah Mauriohooho-Le’afa made a jumper on the other end but Peatling answered with a 3 and the Hornets missed their next five shots before Davison hit two free throws to make it 77-71 with seven seconds remaining.

Mauriohooho-Le’afa tied his career high with 23 points for the Hornets (13-12, 6-10). Joshua Patton added 18 points and three assists and Esposito finished with 12 points.

The Eagles led by as many as 17 points in the first half and Peatling’s 3-pointer to open the second half gave them a 42-26 lead. Sacramento State scored 12 of the next 15 points and later used a 15-0 run to take a 62-56 lead when Patton’s layup capped the spurt with 7:39 to play.

Eastern Washington plays Northern Arizona at home on Saturday. Sacramento State plays Idaho on the road on Saturday.