BOX SCORE
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – The No. 8 Oregon Tech men's basketball team held off No. 11 Eastern Oregon University in the Cascade Collegiate Conference tournament championships, 88-83.
The Mountaineers (25-6) stayed with top-seeded Oregon Tech for much of the game. In a game that featured the top two seeds in the CCC tournament, the Hustlin' Owls' perimeter shooting was the difference. OIT finished 11 of 19 from behind the arc, while Eastern was 7 for 18. The two programs entered the game second and third in NAIA Div. 2 in three pointers made per game and total three pointers made.
Eastern Oregon fell for the 30th consecutive time to Oregon Tech in Klamath Falls, a streak dating back to Feb. 16, 1979, while OIT won its 56th straight home game. The Owls became the first team in the conference to win the tournament title three straight times.
Jason Mumm recorded a career-high 28 points for EOU, scoring 19 in the first half. The junior finished 9 of 15 from the field and 3 for 4 from behind the perimeter.
Josh Cottle scored a season-high 15 points, shooting 6 of 8 from the field. The senior added four assists.
JC Cook grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
Tech opened the game with a 7-2 lead, before Eastern took its first lead on a Mumm three-pointer at the 11:50 mark of the first half, 17-16. EOU had a 19-18 advantage, but the Owls responded with a 12-0 run to take its largest lead of the game with 6:14 left in the opening period. The Mountaineers closed the gap to four points and trailed at halftime, 45-41.
Eastern opened the second half on an 8-4 run to tie the game at 49. OIT regained the lead and stretched the margin to eight points, 64-56, with 11:44 left in regulation. Over the next four minutes Eastern went on a 13-4 run to take the lead back, 69-68. Tech answered with an 8-0 run and held the lead for the rest of the game. The Mountaineers would come as close as three points three times in the final three minutes.
Oregon Tech (29-4) was led by Joseph Foster's 21 points. The senior was 6 of 9 from the field, and 4 for 5 from behind the perimeter. Brent Johnson finished with a career-high 20 points on 9 of 12 shooting from the field. Kyle Gomez and Bryant Sentman each scored 10 points. Gomez grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, and David Clarke had five assists.
Each team shot 50 percent from the field, the Owls were 30 of 59 and EOU shot 31 for 62. Eastern was 14 of 19 from the free-throw line, while Tech finished 17 for 20. OIT had 15 assists and 12 turnovers, and the Mountaineers ended with 11 assists and nine turnovers.
Eastern Oregon has already secured its fourth straight trip to the NAIA Div. 2 National Tournament, and waits the releasing of the pairings for the National Tournament which will be Wednesday at 5 p.m. A live selection show party with the Mountaineer men's team will be in the Quinn building in room 127 on the EOU campus. The final Top 25 poll will be released Wednesday morning.
