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PREVIEW: CCC Men’s Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals, Presented by U.S. Bank
Tomorrow marks the start of the 2018-19 Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Men’s Basketball Tournament, presented by U.S. Bank.

PREVIEW: CCC Men’s Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals, Presented by U.S. Bank

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LA GRANDE, Ore. – Tomorrow marks the start of the 2018-19 Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Men’s Basketball Tournament, presented by U.S. Bank. The tournament will determine who advances to the NAIA National Tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D. on March 6-12.

Tournament Central

The top-four seeds (based upon finish in the regular-season standings) will host quarterfinal round matchups at 7 p.m. local time, with the highest remaining seeds hosting the lowest remaining seeds in each of the following rounds.

Below is a preview of each of tomorrow night’s contests.

#8 Northwest at #1 Oregon Tech – Klamath Falls, Ore.

Northwest (14-16, 6-12 CCC) will begin postseason play in the eighth and final spot, clinching a postseason berth with a 104-98 victory over Multnomah on Saturday. The Eagles will look to play spoiler against regular-season champion Oregon Tech, heading to Klamath Falls on Wednesday with a high-powered arsenal of their own. Perhaps most notable of Northwest’s weapons is Hussayn Ford, who is one of the CCC’s best all-around players. The only member of the conference to average a double-double, Ford ranks third in scoring (19.5 PPG) and first in rebounding (11.1 RPG).

Oregon Tech (24-6, 15-3 CCC) enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed, after downing College of Idaho in an exciting regular-season finale to claim the top spot in the CCC standings. The Owls boast a fine-tuned offensive attack, dishing out a CCC-best 17.8 assists per game during the regular season. Despite lacking a single top-10 scorer in the conference, Oregon Tech relies on a variety of offensive threats—most notably their two leading scorers, Mitchell Fink (13.4 PPG) and Seth Erickson (13.4 PPG)—and its substantial depth.

The Owls swept the two game season series between the two squads, downing Northwest comfortably on December 15 (80-61) and edging the Eagles in a one-point nail-biter (69-68) in the teams’ next face-off.

#7 Warner Pacific at #2 College of Idaho – Caldwell, Idaho

Warner Pacific (16-13, 7-11 CCC), helmed by Jared Valentine in his eighth year, will travel to Caldwell as the No. 7 seed on Wednesday. Ranked in the NAIA top-25 early in the season, the Knights have retained a number of players from the 2017-18 team that advanced all the way to the CCC Tournament Championship, giving them valuable big-game experience. Among those is Collin Malcolm, who is a top-five scorer and rebounder in the CCC, averaging 19.3 PPG and 8.1 boards a game, respectively.

College of Idaho (25-5, 14-4 CCC) has proven itself to be as good as any team in the nation at different moments throughout the 2018-19 season. At one point ranked No. 1 in the NAIA, the Yotes thrive off of their relentless defense, which held opponents to a CCC-best 68.7 points per game in the regular season. Similarly to Oregon Tech, the Yotes don’t rely on a couple of big scorers on a night-in, night-out basis. Instead, first-year head coach Colby Blaine implements a varied and balanced offensive scheme, with four Yotes (Nate Bruneel, Talon Pinckney, Gibson Berryhill, and Keun Palu-Thompson) finishing the regular-season with double-digit scoring averages.

The Yotes won both of the two teams’ matchups during the regular season, claiming game one by a 75-57 tally and game two by a 78-68 margin.

#6 Southern Oregon at #3 Northwest Christian – Eugene, Ore.

Southern Oregon (19-10, 9-9 CCC) has shown itself capable of standing toe-to-toe with the CCC’s best throughout the year, collecting a number of high profile victories during the 2018-19 season. Among these are a couple of big wins down the stretch, including a road triumph over then-No. 25 Northwest Christian and a convincing 85-69 upset of then-No. 3 College of Idaho. Tristen Holmes is undoubtedly one of the Raiders’ biggest playmakers, with the senior guard averaging 16.5 points and 3.6 assists per game.

Northwest Christian (19-9, 11-7 CCC) clinched the No. 3 seed with an exhilarating overtime win on the road against Corban this past weekend, giving the Beacons a strong seeding and valuable momentum heading into the upcoming tournament. Northwest Christian lays claim to the highest individual scorer of the tournament field, with Austin Tyner averaging 20.5 points a game in the regular season, second in the entire conference only to Multnomah’s Justin Martin. The Beacons average 91.8 points per contest, boasting five players (Tyner, Tyrus Hosley, Reece Robinson, and Davonte Cleveland) who average double-figures. 

The Beacons came out on top of a high-scoring affair (108-104) over Southern Oregon on January 11 in Ashland, and the Raiders returned the favor with the 87-76 triumph in Eugene on February 9.

#5 Eastern Oregon at #4 Corban – Salem, Ore.

Eastern Oregon (15-14, 10-8 CCC) won a crucial game over No. 6-seeded Southern Oregon in the final game of the regular season to clinch the No. 5 seed. The Mountaineers are led offensively by Jordan May (19.4 PPG), one of the conference’s top scorers. Eastern Oregon head coach Carlito Labarda Jr. has multiple additional weapons to turn to, with Landon Jones (12.1 PPG), Jarek Schetzle (12 PPG), and Joel Anderson (10.9 PPG) all averaging double-figures as well. As a team, the Mountaineers are averaging 82.5 points per game while allowing 81.9 points per game.

Corban (20-8, 11-7 CCC) comes into the tournament hot, having won seven of their last eight. The Warriors are spearheaded by 2018-19 newcomer AJ Hodges, who has notched an average of 15.7 points per game in his first season with Corban. Down low, Beau Roggenbach (11.4 PPG, 9.7 RPG) has established himself as a strong presence beneath the rim for Warrior head coach Mitch Freeman, averaging double figures offensively and ranking second in the conference in rebounds. He is accompanied by veteran Joel Johnson (11 PPG), who is a talented scorer and defender (1.5 blocks per game) in the paint.

Eastern Oregon swept the season series, defeating the Warriors 91-82 on December 16 and 75-72 on January 18.

The complete schedule for the upcoming tournament is as follows:

Quarterfinals - Wednesday, February 20
#8 Northwest (Wash.) (14-16) at #1 Oregon Tech (24-6)
#7 Warner Pacific (Ore.) (16-13) at #2 College of Idaho (25-5)
#6 Southern Oregon at #3 Northwest Christian (Ore.) (19-9)
#5 Eastern Oregon (15-14) at #4 Corban (Ore.) (20-8)

Semifinals - Saturday, February 23
Semifinal 1 – Lowest remaining seed at Highest remaining seed
Semifinal 2 – Next lowest remaining seed at next highest remaining seed

Finals - Tuesday, February 26
Championship (Broadcasted live on ROOT Sports)

The winner of the 2018-19 CCC Tournament will earn the conference’s second automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament. If the winner of the tournament happens to also be regular-season champion Oregon Tech, then No. 2-seeded College of Idaho will earn the berth.

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