LA GRANDE, Ore. – For the second time in 2026, the No. 7-seeded Corban University Men's Basketball team did what no other Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) program was able to do in the regular season; hand RV Eastern Oregon University a loss on their home court. In front of a typical Mountaineer home crowd ruckus, the Warriors played lights out defense in the second half to hold EOU to just 32 total points all while playing consistent offense in a 78-70 CCC Tournament Quarterfinal stunner. The loss bounces the No. 2-seeded Mountaineers from the conference tourney after having just handed Corban a forty-point Senior Night loss in Salem not even two weeks ago, setting the Navy and Gold up for a huge upset win tonight inside Quinn Coliseum.
"Our guys dug deep and had a never-give-up mentality tonight!" exclaimed Corban head coach Wayne Mendezona shortly after tonight's result. "They were not going to be denied this victory, and all the credit goes to their hustle, extreme determination, and overall collective mindset. To think we shot thirty-five free throws and only made eighteen of them but still came out with a win, that just goes to show how much guts this team has."
When asked to discuss the individual efforts, Mendezona shared, "Joe was the lifeline of this team on the defensive end as he increased his pressure at the beginning of the second half getting three huge steals and putting maximum pressure on their best offensive threats. Anjay and CJ were also instrumental in applying extreme pressure on EOU, which made it especially difficult for them to shoot from three. In fact, because of those three along with Oreon, Tj, Payton, and Benett, our team held them to just two three-pointers in the second half, which was 12% for the period. We are so grateful for the outstanding team performance, and all the credit goes to this amazing group of players who listened to the gameplan and tried to execute to the best of their ability. Now, we need to get some rest and get ready for another strong game against Bushnell at their place on Saturday night."
The Navy and Gold (15-14) were able to keep pace with the Mountaineers (21-8) through the opening twenty minutes of regulation by hitting just under 52% of their field goal attempts while holding EOU to under 45% on their own offensive end of the court. However, double the number of turnovers for the Dubs (6-to-3) and a four-rebound margin in favor of the Mounties resulted in the three-point halftime deficit at 38-35, still very much within Corban's reach of a road playoff victory to keep their season alive.
At 17:27 in the second half, Eastern Oregon had just taken their largest lead of the contest at 44-37, but a 7-0 Corban run nullified EOU's advantage and instead sparked a massive rally for the Navy and Gold. Running out ahead in transition and forcing key turnovers with the patented Warrior full court press resulted in 12 total Mountie turnovers and an eventual 35% field goal percentage for the hosts in the second half, as EOU hauled in 18 offensive rebounds yet couldn't buy a bucket when they needed it most.
As time rapidly dwindled away on the game clock, the Dubs slowly added to their lead at the free throw line and in fast paced transition off Mountaineer missed shots and turnovers, hitting the double-digit mark on a pair of made free throws by senior Benett Bos. The second steal of the night from redshirt junior guard Clyde Harris Jr. set redshirt junior center Tj Zimmermann up for a layup on the other end of the court, pushing the Warriors' lead to 68-55 with just over four minutes remaining.
The closest Eastern Oregon would reach the remainder of the contest came with 54 seconds remaining after trimming the Corban scoreboard advantage to five points, yet back-to-back empty possessions by both squads wasted nearly half of the time remaining before the Navy and Gold netted a pair of clutch free throw from Zimmermann. Another missed shot by the Mounties allowed graduate student forward Oreon Courtney to find a sprinting Harris Jr. up the middle of the court, who sealed the Mountaineers' fate with a layup, plus the foul for a free throw attempt. One made three-pointer for EOU and another pair of free throws for Zimmermann later, and the Warriors departed La Grande and left the Mounties with a stinging home loss once again, this time in postseason action.
Just as he did the first time in eastern Oregon this season, junior guard Joe Gould was a problem for the Mounties, as he tied his Corban career-high in scoring with 22 points, along with five rebounds, four assists, three steals, and a pair of blocks in 32 minutes played. Zimmermann added 16 points and was two rebounds shy of a double-double with eight boards, while Courtney scored 14 points along with four dimes and four rebounds. Harris Jr. tied Courtney with 14 points and was exceptional on the offensive glass, bringing down seven total boards, three of which were on the offensive end of the court.
Eastern Oregon was led offensively by guard James Bodily who hopped off the bench for a team-high 20 points, with forward Keilan Torkornoo and guard Trent Rogers representing the only other Mountaineers with double-figure point totals of 12 and 10, respectively. EOU took 74 total shots on Wednesday night, finding the bottom of the net on 29 of those attempts (39.2%), six of their 27 three-pointers (22.2%), and assisted on just nine of those 29 field goals. Despite hauling in 18 offensive rebounds, the Mounties had eight second chance points to show for it.
The Warriors will have another opportunity to avenge early season results this upcoming Saturday in the conference tournament semifinal stage, as they'll travel to No. 6-seeded and I-5 rival Bushnell University (14-14) looking to reverse their regular season sweep at the hands of the Beacons with a spot in the CCC Championship matchup awaiting the winner. Tipoff is scheduled for 7pm inside the Morse Center on Bushnell's campus.
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