The 2010 Oregon tech Hustlin' Owls (photo by Kelly Caleb)
Hustlin’ Owls Clinch No. 1 Seed
PORTLAND, Ore. -- The No. 2 Oregon Tech Hustlin’ Owls romped past Concordia to clinch the Cascade Collegiate Conference’s No. 1 automatic bid to the NAIA Division II men’s national basketball tournament with a 97-77 win over the Cavaliers.
Regardless of what happens tomorrow night at Warner Pacific, OIT holds all of the tiebreakers so will head into the postseason as at the least the regular season CCC co-champions.
No. 2 Oregon Tech concludes the regular season at Warner Pacific, and the Knights not only must beat the Hustlin’ Owls, but hope The Evergreen State can win at Eastern Oregon to move WPC into a tie for second place in the league.
An Oregon Tech loss and Eastern win would leave the two schools tied for the conference championship for the second straight season, but tiebreakers favor the Hustlin’ Owls.
The trip to Branson in March will be Tech's eighth straight. Oregon Tech also will open the league playoffs at home Wednesday, but its opponent will not be known until after Saturday’s games.
Friday, Concordia took an early lead, but the hot-shooting Owls were able to open up a 52-42 halftime lead. The hustlin' Owls shot 66 percent from the floor in the first half, and 59 percent for the game.
Myles Daley paced the Tech with 19 points, with Joseph Foster (18), Mike Nieraeth (15) and Scott Riddle (11) also scoring in double figures.
Daley also had two rebounds, which make him the 14th OIT player with 600 or more career rebounds. Daley also becomes the ninth player with both 1,000 points and 600 rebounds in his career with the Hustlin’ Owls.
Justin Parnell had a team-high six rebounds and seven assists. Even with the loss, the Cavaliers clinched a postseason playoff berth when Southern Oregon lost to Warner Pacific, 83-66.
For the Cavaliers, Alex Tiefenthaler scored 19 points, with Drew Preuninger, Jourdan Sweeney and Kevan West also scoring in double figures. Sweeney also had a game-high seven rebounds.
Oregon Tech will wrap up the Cascade Conference regular season Saturday night at Warner Pacific. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 pm in Portland, Oregon. The game can be heard live on 92.5 KLAD-FM and anywhere in the world at OITSPORTS.com