EOU's Jordan Gregg scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds against Concordia.
Sharp Shooting Mountaineers Stun Cavs at Home
PORTLAND, Ore.—Hitting 60 percent of their attempts to help go on an 18-3 run in the first Eastern Oregon defeated Concordia 94-73 in a Cascade Collegiate Conference men’s basketball road contest on Wednesday night.
With the win, EOU, ranked No. 21 in the NAIA Division II coaches’ poll, improved to 10-4 on the year with a 4-1 mark in the CCC. Concordia fell to 10-3 overall and 1-3 in league play.
Concordia briefly held a lead in the first with the opening bucket by Gage Aker and a follow-up three by Alex Tiefenthaler to make the score 5-4 in the early stages, but the Mountaineers’ Dan Stafford responded to The Cavalier three-pointer with a long-ranged shot of his own to give EOU a 7-5 lead, a lead in which they would not relinquish.
With the score 15-10 in favor of the Mountaineers, EOU used contributions from six different players to unleash an 18-3 run to go up 33-13. Continuing their dominance, the Mountaineers extended their lead to 30 with the score 55-25 at the half as all 10 players entered the scoring column in the period.
After converting just 9 of 37 attempts in the first for a 24.3 percent rate, Concordia came out hot in the second half by hitting 20 of its 31 attempts for a 64.5 field goal percentage over the final 20 minutes. EOU still made more than half of its shots in the second to keep the Cavs at bay, finishing with a 57.4 percent clip.
EOU had four players reach double figures with Jordan Gregg leading the way with 17 after hitting on 8 of 10 attempts from the field. Cody Thurmond had 16 off the bench while Thomas McCarthy added 14.
Jourdan Sweeney posted a team-high 19 pints for the Cavaliers, also connected on 8 of 10 from the field. Jason Holzwarth pitched in with 13 while Dustin Hiebert had 12 and Tiefenthaler 10.
EOU enjoyed a 42 to 27 lead in the rebounding department with Gregg corralling a game-high 12 boards. Both teams were credited with 14 turnovers and both teams registered nine three-point baskets with EOU taking one less attempt from long range, 22 to 21.
Concordia returns to action on Thursday when it hosts College of Idaho. EOU will continue its road trip by traveling to face Warner Pacific. Both games are set for a 7:30 p.m. start in Portland.