EUGENE, Ore. – In what was a closely-contested contest from start to finish, the Corban University men's basketball team came up just short in its Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) season-opener against Northwest Christian University, 86-82.

"We did a poor job of executing offensively tonight against a Northwest Christian team that shot the ball very well," said head coach Mitch Freeman. "We had moments in the second half where we looked good, but we couldn't extend it for 40 minutes. We will need to bounce back next week with three games in six days."

Despite the lead switching hands on numerous occasions during the matchup, Northwest Christian was able to pull ahead in the final minutes and endure a late Corban push to spoil the Warriors' CCC debut.

Both teams had strong shooting performances, with the Warriors finishing the night shooting 51.7% from the field and 48% from beyond-the-arc. While those marks are undoubtedly competitive, Northwest Christian was also sharp from the floor, shooting 52.3% from the field and going 14-28 (50%) from three-point range.

Corban was spearheaded offensively by Beau Roggenbach and Chandler Cavell, with Roggenbach earning a double-double with his 17-point, 13-board performance and Cavell finishing with 17 points of his own in the defeat.   

Austin Tyner wreaked havoc all night for the Beacons, going 10-for-16 from the field and sinking five three pointers to finish the game with 27 points. His teammate Ernest Ugoagu was also difficult to contain, adding 17 points to go alongside four assists in the Beacon triumph.

The Warriors (7-2, 0-1 CCC) will once again travel to Eugene for their next contest, with the Navy and Gold slated to take on New Hope Christian College on the road at 7 p.m.