Will Heimbrodt’s Career Night Lifts Redhawks to 87-80 Road Win vs. Waves
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Seattle Redhawks forward Will Heimbrodt skies for a layup against the Pepperdine Waves. Credit: Seattle U Men’s Basketball/Instagram [/caption]
MALIBU, Calif. - WCC play has been up and down for Wiil Heimbrodt, but in the wake of guard Brayden Maldonado's injury, the playmaking forward has stepped up. On Wednesday night, the sophomore put together the best performance of his career at the perfect time to lead the Redhawks to an 87-80 win over the Pepperdine Waves.
Igniting a hot Seattle U offense, Heimbrodt finished with 24 points on 10-13 shooting from the field, matching a career-high, along with five assists, five blocks, four rebounds, and four steals. From the tip, he represented a matchup nightmare for the Waves. No one in the backcourt could match his physicality, and no one in the front court could keep up with his speed. Nine of his field goals came in the paint, and he got to the rim in a multitude of ways.
Heimbrodt posted up smaller defenders, backing them down and scanning the floor before decisively making the right read. When he pulled a bigger defender, he used his quick first step and signature spin move to create separation and open looks. This performance must have been what coach Chris Victor thought this sophomore season would look like when Heimbrodt set a previous career high in their first game of the season against Denver.
But after a 24-point performance to open the season, things have been shaky for Heimbrodt and it only became more apparent in WCC play when the team as a whole seemed to have taken a step back. In multiple games, he has not been able to make his impact felt. His issues on offense of not being a great screener or spot-up shooter become more apparent in games when he can not find his shot or take care of the ball, which has led to criticism from his coach on numerous occasions.
But against Pepperdine, Victor and Redhawks fans saw an aggressive Heimbrodt both attacking and playing smart in Seattle’s third game without its leading scorer in Maldonado. Being the number one option, Heimbrodt did not just create his own shot, but created looks for everyone on the floor. A beneficiary of the pressure he put on the rim was center Austin Maurer. He finished with 16 points on 7-8 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds. Maurer played around the basket and flashed a couple of times as a dunker and cleaning up on the offensive glass.
These two presences in the paint helped lead Seattle to scoring 87 points, which marks its highest in WCC play, managing to do so on only six made three pointers. Instead, the Redhawks relied on attacking the basket, scoring 50 points in the paint, which has been the key to surviving without Maldonado thus far.
The Waves had better luck from behind the arc, shooting 42% as their leading scorer, David Mager, had 25 points and five threes off the bench. Mager had to step up in light of the Waves leading scorer on the season, Aaron Clark, having one of his worst games to date with only six points on 2-8 shooting from the field. He came into the matchup averaging 25 over his last eight games and not scoring under double digits in 10 games.
Yet, Seattle’s Maleek Arington has given WCC guards trouble all season and Clark looked visibly frustrated as the veteran defender got the better of the matchup throughout the night, limiting his damage in what proved to be critical with the home team making a late run.
Despite trailing by as much as 19 in the second half, the Waves did not go away easy. In part thanks to heroics from Mager, the Waves trimmed the deficit with less than 5 minutes left, making things interesting for a moment.
But the Redhawks held on and late in the game, guard Jojo Murphy came alive again. In his third start since the Maldonado injury, Murphy had 12 points, all of which came in the second half, to go with six assists and four rebounds. He has done most of his damage in the second half of the past three games, and Victor relied on the senior heavily, as he played a team-high 35 minutes.
Riding a two-game winning streak, Seattle U will close out the regular season Saturday on the road against LMU at 6 PM PT, giving one more chance to improve and solidify seeding heading into the WCC tournament.
