Concordia Upsets No. 10-Ranked Eastern Oregon
PORTLAND, Ore.—A day after coming back from eight points in the second half, the Concordia men’s basketball team outdid itself on Saturday, this time by turning around a nine-point deficit for a 67-62 win against No. 10-ranked Eastern Oregon at home inside the Cavalier Gymnasium.
With the result, Concordia moved to 9-10 on the season while evening its Cascade Collegiate Conference record to 5-5. Eastern Oregon, ranked No. 10 in the latest NAIA Division II basketball poll, lost for just the third time this season for a 15-3 overall record and 8-1 in the CCC.
With just 15 field goals shared in the first half with each team shooting 33.3 percent from the floor, the Mountaineers entered intermission with a 24-19 lead based largely on an 11-point sum by Neil Fryer )Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap H.S.).
With the first four points after returning to the court, EOU engineered a nine-point lead before the first minute of the second period had elapsed. The Cavs would chip away at the margin with a 15-5 run including a string of seven straight points, the first four via free throws and the capper coming by a three-point shot by Ryan Murray (Pitt Meadows, B.C.) with10:54 left for a 34-33 lead.
Six lead changes and three ties in the next four minutes would result in a 46-43 Concordia lead with just under seven minutes remaining, but behind a 21-of-23 second-half performance from the free throw line, the Cavaliers would not relinquish the lead the rest of the contest and hold on for the four-point win.
“It was a chess match in the first half,” Concordia head coach Brad Barbarick said. “We did some great things down the stretch and found a way to win.”
Fryer led all scorers with 15 points. One shy, Desmond Meray (Spanaway, Wash./Bethel H.S.) tallied a 14-point sum to lead the Cavs. Ryan Johnson (Vancouver, Wash./Evergreen H.S.) secured nine rebounds for a game-high while also notching 12 points.
Murray and Cody Aker (Portland, Ore./Wilson H.S.) were both perfect from the free throw line with seven attempts while the Cavs shot 86.2 percent (25-of-29) as a team. EOU shot 56.5 percent from the stripe after converting on 13-of-23 attempts.
The teams finished within one in the rebounding column with the Cavs holding a 30-29 edge. Both teams committed 17 turnovers.
Concordia continues its conference homestand with a Tuesday match against Corban College. Tip is slated for 7:30 p.m. In the first meeting on Jan. 8, Concordia defeated Corban 76-60 in Salem, Ore.
“It will be the third tough home game in a row,” Barbarick said. “We feel good to get that momentum on our home court. We will be ready to get after it against a team that has turned it up lately.”