SALEM, Ore. – The Corban University men's basketball team fell behind early in a Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) contest on Friday evening, and it ultimately proved to be too big of a hole to climb out of as the Warriors fell to the Oregon Tech Owls, 77-69. The loss snaps Corban's two-game CCC win streak.
Three-point shooting proved to play a large role in deciding the victor of Friday's conference contest, and it was the Owls who took advantage of some open three-pointers early on, draining three shots from beyond the arc inside of the first two minutes. After garnering the early 9-0 advantage, Oregon Tech opened it up into a 17-6 lead. Freshman guard AJ Monterossi (Beaverton, Ore.) drained a mid-range jumper to cut into the deficit, and junior forward Cyrus Ward (Gig Harbor, Wash.) added a pair of buckets to inch the Warriors closer.
Freshman forward Colby Mueller (Klamath Falls, Ore.) added a layup a few minutes later, and the lead was just seven, but then Oregon Tech's Austen Flint got hot from downtown, sinking three more three-pointers in a two-minute span, putting the Owls up by 17 points.
The two sides traded buckets back and forth throughout the remainder of the half, and Corban kept the game within reach by the break, but the Owls did hold a significant advantage going into the intermission, 50-34. Oregon Tech sank 10 shots from three-point land during the first 20 minutes, while Corban attempted just two shots from deep, making none.
In the second stanza, Ward stayed hot from the field, converting on a jumper to begin the half. Still however, the Owls continued to make their shots from all over the floor, maintaining their lead.
Corban remained poised as well though, and didn't force anything. At the 13-minute mark, sophomore guard Caleb Herzberg (Beaverton, Ore.) hit the Warriors' first three-pointer of the game, cutting the deficit to just 11 points. At the point, Corban began to lock down defensively, and eventually with just under six minutes remaining, freshman guard Kade Crossland (Buhl, Idaho) came off the bench to sink a three-pointer, bringing the Navy and Gold to within nine.
The next time down the floor, senior guard Jordan Carter (Salem, Ore.) matched Crossland with a three-pointer of his own, making it a six-point game. The Owls (10-5, 3-2 CCC) responded with four-straight points, but Crossland remained hot, draining from downtown again. Down by seven points with 2:46 remaining, Carter pulled up from way behind the three-point arc, sinking a shot that brought the Warriors to within four points.
Down the stretch however, the Warriors could not find the right shots or convert their opportunities on the offensive end, resulting in the eight-point loss.
Watch the game highlights here:
"We dug ourselves too big of a hole in the first half to beat a good team like OIT," commented head coach Steve Masten. "I'm hopeful the lesson my young team learned tonight is if you don't play with incredible intensity from start to finish, you have no hope and no right to expect to win in our very tough league."
For Corban, Ward finished with a double-double performance, scoring 19 points while grabbing 11 boards. Carter added 13 points and a team-best five assists, while Crowe and Monterossi added 11 and 10 points for the Warriors, respectively.
For the Owls, it was Lavar Moore leading the way with 21 points, while Austen Flint tallied 21 points as well.
As a team, Corban shot 43.9% from the field, while the Owls shot 45.2% from the floor. Both teams finished with 26 points-in-the-paint, while Oregon Tech converted on 19 second-chance points with Corban only garnering eight in the category. Corban was also outscored on the bench, with the Owls' bench players totaling 20 points to just 14 for the Navy and Gold.
The Warriors (9-4, 2-2 CCC) return to the hardwood tomorrow evening when they host No. 16 Southern Oregon University (13-3, 3-2 CCC) in the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center at 7:30 p.m. If you can't make it to the game, be sure to follow the action via live stats and the live video feed.
