WPC's Scott O'Gallagher, the league's leading scorer, tallied 24 points in the win.
Knights Still Alive, Will Face EOU in Men's CCC Tournament Semifinals
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Warner Pacific entered the playoffs with one thing on its mind. Win or go home. elimination game. Concordia started the game hot just as they had two weeks earlier when they beat WPC convincingly. The high-paced start to the game slowed down and saw the Knights take a 39-33 lead into the half. The Knights kept their distance in the second half but never could quite pull away. The Cavaliers knocked down a few three's in the closing minutes to keep it interesting but WPC knocked down their free throws to close out the win.
The Knights got big games from their three senior leaders. Scott O'Gallagher led the way with 24 points and five rebounds, Josh Jackson and Jalonta Martin scored 23 points apiece with Martin also contributing six rebounds. Martin, who leads the conference in rebounding, was held under
his rebounding average and it showed in the stat sheet. Concordia punished the Knights on the boards and finished the game with a 45-33 advantage on the glass. Cody Aker had 11 rebounds but the Cavalier's leader struggled shooting the ball going 3-18 from the field. Ryan Johnson picked up the slack however, pouring in a game high 27 points to go along with nine rebounds.
All top seeds won their opening round games of the Cascade Conference playoffs which means the Knights will have to earn a trip to the national tournament the hard way. Saturday the Knights will travel to La Grande, Ore., where they take on regular season conference champion Eastern Oregon, which is currently ranked fifth in the national rankings. It is another do or die game that the Knights must win in order to keep their season alive.