SALEM, Ore. – Sophomore Kendall Moore scored a game- and career-high 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field, as Corban University's men's basketball could not capitalize on a 15-0 first half run falling to Southern Oregon University, 87-82, in Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) action Saturday night inside the Lithia Motors Pavilion.

With tonight's result, Corban falls to 10-3 overall and 5-2 in CCC contests. According to the current conference standings, the Navy and Gold hold a ½ game lead over Oregon Tech with five games remaining. Meanwhile, Southern Oregon improves to 3-2 overall and 3-2 in conference games.

"We fought hard, but we couldn't quite manufacture enough stops," said first-year head coach Taylor Kelly. "I thought if we stick a few more free throws and execute better down the stretch, we find a way to pull that one out. With all that being said, I'm proud of the team and know we will be better tomorrow."

Along with Moore, sophomore Dirk Helaire II and senior Denis Kirichenko scored nine and eight points, respectively, with the senior duo of Jordan Newt and Isiah Quintero adding seven points each. The senior trio of Kirichenko, Quintero, and Mauricio Smith each pulled down a team-high six rebounds, while Helaire handed out a team-leading four assists.

The game began with Corban grabbing a 9-5 lead before Southern Oregon used a 15-4 run to pull ahead by seven points (20-13) with just over 12 minutes remaining in the first half. Over the next four minutes and 39 seconds, the Navy and Gold scored 15 unanswered points to earn a 28-20 lead on lay-in by Taylor Anderson with 7:22 on the clock. Corban pushed its lead to a game-high 12 points on a fast break lay-in by Josiah Roth with 5:41 left, as the visiting Warriors earned a 34-22 lead. Southern Oregon cut the deficit down to six points (42-36) with 44 seconds remaining before Corban reclaimed a double-digit lead (46-36) on a fast break lay-in by Moore with 23 seconds left. The host Raiders scored the final points of the first half, as the Navy and Gold took a 46-39 lead into halftime.

The second half began with Corban pushing its lead back to double digits (49-39) in the opening two minutes and nine seconds. The Navy and Gold continued to hold the lead grabbing a 67-59 advantage on a three-pointer by Newt with 9:48 on the clock. Over the next six-plus minutes, Southern Oregon put together a 20-8 run to retake the lead (79-75) on a jumper in the paint by Elijah Jackson with just under three-and-a-half minutes left. Corban battled back to tie the game (80-80) on the free throw by Roth with 1:42 left. Unfortunately, the Navy and Gold could not get over the hump as the host Raiders got a key three-pointer from Tez Allen to take an 83-80 lead and never looked back. Corban got within a single point (83-82) on a lay-in by Moore, but Southern Oregon connected on four straight free throws down the stretch to earn the hard-fought victory.

Southern Oregon was led offensively by Josh Meyer with 24 points, while three other Raiders – Allen, Jake Virga, and Josh Washington – also scored in double figures with 21, 14, and 11 points, respectively. Allen led SOU's rebounding efforts with a game-high nine rebounds, while Washington and Meyer contributed with eight and seven boards, respectively. Allen nearly registered a triple-double handing out a game-high seven assists to go along with three steals.

As a team, Corban combined to shoot 30-for-58 (51.7%) from the field that included a 56.25% (18-for-32) clip over the opening 20 minutes. The Warriors were also a combined 9-for-22 (40.9%) from beyond the three-point line and 13-of-24 (54.2%) at the free throw line. On the other hand, Southern Oregon was a combined 33-of-64 (51.6%) from the field hitting more than 50% of its shots in each half, while also connecting on 13-of-27 (48.1%) from long distance and made 8-of-14 (57.1%) at the charity stripe.

These same two teams will return to the hardwood tomorrow – Sunday, April 17 – to close out this weekend's CCC doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m. inside the Lithia Motor Pavilion in Ashland.

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