by Klamath Falls, Ore. – In the quarter final round of the Cascade Collegiate Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Hosted by U.S. Bank, the Oregon Tech Hustlin’ Owls took down regional rivals, the SOU Raiders, by a score of 89-77 on Danny Miles Court.
The game began with both teams showing signs of nerves over the first 10:00 minutes of play, as neither team was able to find an offensive rhythm. SOU opened the scoring, but Tech responded on the next possession. The score stayed tight with four ties and four lead changes to begin the game. The Owls jumped ahead with an 11-2 run, started by a deep three-pointer from freshman guard Mitchell Fink, pushing the lead to 8-points. As the game heated up and the teams gained offensive momentum, Conor Carroll and Kenny Meyer hit on their next two possessions for SOU to keep the game close.
Tech freshmen Tyler Hieb and Seth Erickson each hit on deep three-point attempts stretching the Owl’s lead back to 8-points, as SOU called a timeout to regroup. Coming back out, SOU and Tech exchanged baskets before the home side converted on three missed possessions by SOU, taking the lead to 14-points. The half closed with SOU’s Tristan Holmes converting the last attempt before the buzzer, taking the teams into the break at a score of 48-37 in favor of Tech.
Returning to the floor, the teams got back to exchanging buckets on either end. Three forced turnovers by the SOU defense saw the Raiders go on a 2-10 run, as the lead was quickly cut to just 3-points. On the next SOU possession, a Ben DeSaulnier three-pointer from the corner tied the score at 52-52. Coming off a missed Tech shot, SOU guard Tristan Holmes hit his next pull-up jumper to give the Raiders the lead for the first time since 11:40 left in the first half.
With both offenses clicking, the game stayed tight over the next 8:00 minutes of play. Hieb, for Tech, hit on a deep three that sent the Owls on a short 7-2 run, giving them a slight advantage in the score. Two strong defensive stops saw Joel Yellow Owl (Blackfeet/Yakama) and Mitchell Fink drop back-to-back three pointers giving the Hustlin’ Owls their biggest lead of the night at 15 points. Tech would hold on to the double-digit lead, as they were able to run the game out with a score of 89-77.
On the night, SOU was led in scoring by junior Ben DeSaulnier with 23 points and 7 rebounds. Also in double digits for the Raiders were Jordan Hunt with 15 points and 6 rebounds, Tristan Holmes with 13 points and 6 rebounds, and Conor Carroll with 12 points.
Five players for Oregon Tech were in double figures as they were led by Joel Yellow Owl with 25 points on the night. Mitchell Fink scored 17 points and had 7 assists, Bryan Beard had 14 points with 7 rebounds, Brandon Halter added 11 points of his own and grabbed 8 rebounds, and Andrew Weber being the fifth Owl in double-digits scored 10 points and 5 rebounds. Senior Chris Faust contributed on the night by pulling down a career-high 11 rebounds and added 4 points on the night.
The loss see the SOU Raiders season come to a conclusion with an overall record of 18-13. The win moves the Oregon Tech Owls to an overall record of 23-8 as they advance in the Cascade Collegiate Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Hosted by U.S. Bank. The Owls will hit the road as they head to Caldwell, Idaho to take on the Yotes of C of I on Saturday, February 25 at 6:00pm with the pre-game show at 5:30 pm on 92.5 KLAD-FM
