Al Case, Ashland Daily Photo.
Boudreaux saves day in debut as SOU downs Warner Pac in overtime
SOU Sports Information
ASHLAND – A few weeks after wrapping up his college football career, Matt Boudreaux made his debut for the Southern Oregon men's basketball team Friday night but needed some volleyball skills to play the hero in the ninth-ranked Raiders' 104-98 overtime win against No. 25 Warner Pacific at Mountain Avenue Gym.
With three-tenths of a second left in regulation and the Raiders trailing 86-84, they ran a baseline out-of-bounds play for Boudreaux, who streaked in from the 3-point line got a pass from Aaron Borich eight feet from the basket and pushed it with two hands – picture a leaping volleyball setter – over a pair of defenders, off the backboard and in for the tie.
SOU (9-5 overall, 4-1 Cascade Conference) trailed by 10 points less than three minutes into the night as WPC (10-4, 5-1) hit its first nine shots from the field. The Knights led by 12 with nine minutes remaining and didn't trail until overtime, which Tristen Holmes started with a three-point play and a layup to put the Raiders up for good.
Kenny Meyer had 26 points, six rebounds and four assists off the bench to keep them afloat. Holmes finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, scoring nine in overtime, and Ben DeSaulnier had 20 points and nine rebounds.
However, it was Boudreaux – a 6-foot-2 junior wing from New Orleans and formerly an all-star receiver – who improbably provided the spark. He contributed 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting and collected three offensive rebounds despite watching from the bench until the 12-minute mark in the second half with the Raiders down 10 and in search of answers.
Trailing 84-78 with two minutes left, Meyer came up with a steal and dribbled into a transition 3-pointer, but Montel Shirley's fast-break layup put the Knights back up by five with 1:17 to go. Boudreaux hit a free throw on SOU's ensuing possession and WPC's De'Jon Bowman missed the front end of a one-and-one on the other end, leading to a quick Holmes layup that cut the Knights' edge to two points with 43 seconds left.
Following two more WPC clanks at the free-throw line, the Raiders took possession with 20 seconds left. Meyer missed at the bucket in the closing seconds, and the rebound went out of bounds to give SOU another chance with 0.3 on the clock.
Boudreaux's miraculous shot ended a pattern of heartbreak in the clutch for the Raiders, whose last four losses have been decided by 10 points combined.
It spoiled spectacular performances by WPC's Xavier Cannefax, who recorded 24 points and 10-of-16 shooting with six rebounds and five assists, and Keaton Bankofier, who went 9-of-14 with four 3-pointers to record 24 points, six rebounds and three blocks.
The Raiders will turn around to play Multnomah at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.