By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
When Washburn University men's basketball last faced Northeastern State on Feb. 15, 2025, Bryson Smith scored 10 points with 11 assists and three steals as the RiverHawks upset the Ichabods 88-84 in Tahlequah, Okla.
Senior Bryson Smith scored 11 points with five assists and four steals in Saturday's 78-54 Washburn win over Northeastern State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Saturday in Lee Arena was deja vu, with one very big twist, as Smith, who transferred to Washburn over the offseason, helped the No. 3-ranked Ichabods post a 78-54 romp past Northeastern.
"I was looking forward to it for sure, playing against my old team and I know a lot of guys on the team,'' said Smith, a 6-foot-2 senior guard. "Coming in, I was just locked in this whole week.''
Smith scored 11 points with five assists and four steals as Washburn improved to 24-1 and 14-1 in the MIAA with its 27th consecutive home victory.
"I started off well in the game but I did some undisciplined stuff, probably just because I was amped up,'' Smith said. "I had a couple of early fouls that took me out of the game, but I was excited and I'm glad we got the dub.''
Washburn trailed just once in the game, at 3-0, and took control by halftime, leading by as many as 19 points on the way to a 41-27 advantage.
After the RiverHawks' early trey Washburn flipped the script with an 11-0 burst.
Washburn shot a blistering 63 percent in the opening half and scored 28 points in the paint over the first 20 minutes while forcing 16 Northeastern State turnovers.
The Ichabods pushed the margin to 20 early in the second half behind back-to-back baskets from senior Brady Christiansen and Smith and went on to lead of as many as 29 late in the game.
"I thought it was kind of a sloppy, ugly game,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. "A lot of turnovers for both teams. I thought we did a great job of turning them over, especially early, and created some transition for us and allowed us to get out to a good lead.
"I did think we came out with the right intensity and purpose and kind of built that lead early, which is important.''
Sophomore Dillon Claussen led Washburn with 14 points and also grabbed six rebounds and blocked three shots in Saturday's 78-54 win over Northeastern State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Sophomore Dillon Claussen led a balanced Washburn attack with 14 points on 5 of 7 shooting while adding six rebounds and three blocks.
In addition to Smith, Christiansen also scored 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting and junior Jack Bachelor added 10 points, knocking down all four of his free throws.
Junior Jeremiah Jones anchored the glass with five rebounds to go with six points, five assists and two steals while sophomore Tyson Ruud scored 10 of Washburn's 26 bench points and added six boards.
Washburn finished the game shooting 55.6 percent (30 of 54) from the floor while scoring 48 points in the paint and turning 24 Northeastern State turnovers into 12 points.
The Ichabods also held a 38-28 rebounding edge and led for more than 39 minutes.
The Ichabods held the RiverHawks 38 points under their season scoring average of 82.9 points per game.
Washburn will go on its final road trip of the regular season with games at Central Oklahoma next Thursday and Rogers State next Saturday before wrapping up the last week of the regular season hosting Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern.
The Ichabods hold a three-game lead in the MIAA standings with four conference games to go.
