LA GRANDE, Ore. – No. 2-seeded Eastern Oregon University had their hands full in a battle with the No. 7-seeded Hustlin' Owls of Oregon Tech on Tuesday night. A couple of big shots from deep helped the Mounties overcome OIT in overtime to take a 82-76 CCC Championship Quarterfinal win. With the win the Mounties clinched their spot in the CCC Semifinals Friday night where they will take on the Southern Oregon University Raiders at home in Quinn Coliseum.
The first half was a gritty battle that saw both teams battling for position with neither able to grab the momentum. In the first half alone, there were 21 fouls as the two teams weren't afraid to get physical early.
OIT jumped out to their largest lead in the half going up five with 12:27 to go after a Keegan Shivers three pointer. From there it was a game of cat and mouse as EOU would inch closer before the Hustlin' Owls would jump ahead again.
The Mounties eventually caught OIT and took a lead with just over six minutes to go. Their biggest lead of the half came when a
Phillip Malatare finished a layup in transition to go up four. At the half Malatare led all scorers with 15 points on 7-14 shooting. OIT went up by one at the break thanks to a last second jumper from Kyle Hadwick to make it 38-37 at the break.
After a rocky first half that lacked rhythm, the action started flow in the second half. Defense tightened up as neither team shot the ball particularly well overall. OIT shot 36% from the field while EOU shot 39%. While shots weren't falling consistently they seemed to drop in the biggest moments.
Eastern and OIT played tug of war with seven lead changes in the second half. It all came down to two big shots at the end of the half that forced overtime. First
Adam Orr rolled of a screen and knocked down a leaning shot from deep to go up three with just 27 seconds on the clock. OIT's Keegan Shivers then answered with the most difficult shot of the night knocking down a heavily contested three to tie it up at 67 with eight seconds to go. EOU gave a last second heave without luck as the two teams went into overtime knotted up at 67.
After a couple of quick overtime buckets from OIT Blake Jensen and EOU's
Phillip Malatare, it was back-to-back Mountie three pointers that determined the game. Down one with 2:25 to go in overtime,
Preston Chandler banked a three from the top of the arc to take a 72-70 lead. On the very next possession
Malachi Afework found some room thanks to an on-ball screen and knocked down a deep three to go up 75-70.
OIT didn't roll over as Jamison Guerra knocked down a three to bring OIT back within five. Then Shivers knocked down another miraculous contested three to bring the Hustlin' Owls within three, 79-76. That was all Oregon Tech had left in the tank though as EOU took care of business at the line to pull away and take the 82-76 victory.
The Mounties now shift their sights to the CCC Semifinals on Friday evening. Eastern will take on the No. 3-seeded Raiders of Southern Oregon University at home in La Grande. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
BY THE NUMBERS
- OIT went an impressive 19-21 at the free throw line keeping them in the game throughout
- Depth played into the Mounties' favor whose bench outscored OIT's 37-11
- A tight game saw EOU hold the lead for 42% of the game, OIT held it for 31% of the game, and it was tied for 27%
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES
- EOU
- OIT
- Joey Potts: 19 PTS, 7-10 FG, 4 REB, 4 BLK
- Jamison Guerra: 19 PTS, 5-18 FG, 9 REB, 6 AST
- Keegan Shivers: 17 PTS, 6-15 FG, 11 REB, 3 AST
