BOX SCORE
LA GRANDE , Ore. – The No. 11 Eastern Oregon University men’s basketball team advanced to the Cascade Collegiate Conference semifinals with a 53-43 win over Southern Oregon University Wednesday.
The Mountaineers (24-5) will play Northwest University Saturday in Quinn Coliseum at 7 p.m. The Eagles come to La Grande after sixth-seeded Corban upset third-seeded Warner Pacific, sending Corban to Oregon Tech in the other semifinal matchup.
Southern Oregon entered the game as the seventh seed, but it was the Raiders that controlled the tempo of much of the game. SOU slowed the Mountaineer offense down by holding possession of the ball for almost the length of the shot clock each time it had it. Eastern was held to season-lows of 53 points, 16 made field goals, and 38 field goal attempts.
Eastern Oregon was led by JC Cook’s 12 points. The senior went 4 of 9 from the field, and 3 for 6 from behind the perimeter. Jason Mumm added 10 points, going 4 of 7 from the field. Anthony Brown grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
After three minutes of scoreless play, Jordan Highland opened the scoring with a Southern lay-in. The Mountaineers responded with an 11-0 run, but it was SOU that answered with an 11-4 run to cut the lead to two. Eastern was able to hold off the Raiders for the rest of the first half and take a 22-21 lead into halftime.
Southern Oregon opened the second half with a 4-2 advantage to take its first lead since the beginning of the game. EOU then took a four-point lead, but again it was the Raiders that responded and took a 31-30 lead after a Scott Tiefenthaler lay-up with 10:18 left in regulation. Eastern would regain the lead and have a 37-35 advantage with 5:25 left in the game. Over the next four minutes the Mountaineers went on a 10-0 run to provide the final cushion they needed.
Kyle Tedder finished with a game-high 14 points leading Southern (14-16). The freshman was 5 of 13 from the field. Highland chipped in 13 points, shooting 6 for 12 from the field. He added a game-high eight rebounds. Jeff Bush threw a game-high three assists.
Each team shot 42 percent from the field. EOU went 5 for 15 from behind the perimeter and Southern was 3 of 13. The Raiders finished 4 for 9 from the free-throw line, while Eastern was 16 of 27. The Mountaineers outrebounded Southern Oregon, 29-25. EOU won for the sixth straight time over the Raiders.
Eastern Oregon rides the conference’s longest win streak, eight games, into the semifinals against No. 23 Northwest (21-7). The Eagles are on the bubble for an at-large berth to the National Tournament and were swept by EOU in the regular season, including last Friday’s thrilling 85-72 Mountaineer victory at Northwest.
Eastern has advanced to the semifinals the past four seasons, but have lost three straight all at home. The last Mountaineer victory in the semifinals was at Northwest in 2006. The fourth-seeded Eagles beat fifth-seeded, The College of Idaho, Wednesday in Kirkland, Wash., 60-54.
Advanced tickets are available in the EOU Athletic Office. The game will have live video and stats on EOUSports.com. A live radio broadcast will be available in the Grande Ronde Valley on KEOL 91.7 FM or worldwide on cast.eou.edu. Fans are encouraged to wear blue to support Eastern.