Sisler Sinks Game-Winning Trey as Corban Beats Northwest
SALEM, Ore. -- Senior Ben Sisler (Corvallis, Ore.) hit the game-winning three-pointer as time expired, as Corban's men's basketball team defeated the Eagles of Northwest, 78-75, as the Martin brothers led the Warriors with 17 points each Friday inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.
After watching the visiting Eagles tie the game at 75-all via an inbounds three-pointer by Derek Miller, sixth-year head coach Justin Sherwood called timeout and instructed his troops as to what to do with 9.1 seconds remaining in the game. Sisler passed the ball into sophomore Paul Martin (Beaverton, Ore.), who dribbled up court before passing off to junior Jason Braun (Dallas, Ore.). With the clock ticking closer and closer to triple zeroes, Braun drove baseline where he was triple-teamed before kicking the ball out to a wide-open Sisler, who calmly knocked down the game-winner in front of the Warriors' bench. As the ball went through the net and the final horn sounded, Sisler was mauled by his teammates in front of the scorer's table as Corban snapped a mini five-game losing streak with tonight's three-point victory.
Paul Martin and his younger brother freshman Clay Martin (Beaverton, Ore.) led the Warriors with 17 points each, as the duo each set career-highs in scoring for a single game. Sisler was one of two other Warriors in double figures with 11 points, while junior Wade Douglas (Ontario, Ore.) added 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
In the opening half, the visiting Eagles of Northwest quickly jumped out to a six-point advantage (12-6) before Corban began to slowly crawl back into the game via the half-court trap that forced ten first half turnovers. The host Warriors' largest lead of the opening half came with 5:39 remaining as Corban secured a 30-18 advantage following a fast break lay-up by Clay Martin. Over the remaining five-plus minutes, Corban was outscored by a mere two points (9-7) but took a ten-point lead (37-27) into the locker room.
In the second half, Northwest quickly cut the difference to three points (44-41) thanks to a 14-7 run over the opening 6:25 of the final stanza. Thanks to a 5-0 run over a span of 72 seconds, Corban grabbed an eight-point lead (49-41) as Braun and Sisler combined to score all five Warrior points. The Warriors kept the Eagles at bay until the 9:24 mark of the second half when Northwest tied the game at 56-all via a lay-up by Eddie Coulson. Corban continued to hold the lead over the next nine minutes and 13 seconds before Miller hit the tying three-pointer therefore setting up Sisler's game-ending heroics.
Northwest was led by Greg George, who scored a game-high 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field to go along with 7-for-9 performance at the free throw line. Meanwhile, Miller and Coulson added 18 and 14 points respectively while George pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds en route to registering a double-double.
As a team, Corban shot 29-for-59 (49.2%) from the field including 6-for-20 (30.0%) from beyond the arc and 14-for-23 (60.9%) from the free throw line. On the other hand, Northwest turned in a 27-for-63 (42.9%) performance from the field that included a 9-for-28 (32.1%) showing from three-point land and a 12-for-17 (70.6%) showing from the charity stripe.
With the win, Corban improves to 8-15 overall, 3-10 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, Northwest evens its record at 11-11 overall, 7-6 in CCC action. The Warriors will hit the hardwood again on Saturday, February 2nd, when Corban hosts the nationally-ranked Geoducks of The Evergreen State College beginning at 7:30 p.m. inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.