No. 16 Owls vs No. 11 Raiders Battle to Final Whistle
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ASHLAND, Ore. – The No. 16 Oregon Tech men's basketball team took on and lost to the No. 11 SOU Raiders in the final seconds of the game, by a score of 106-109, on Tuesday even at Mountain Avenue Gym.
The first half saw even play on both ends of the court by both teams, with the game staying close in score. The Owls found a slight lead over the Raiders 12:00 minutes into the game, pushing their lead to 7 points. The home team buckled down and made a late push closing out the half with an 18-5 run, taking their largest lead of the night by 9 points. The half came to a close with a made 3-pointer, by Seth Erickson, taking the game 51-56, in favor of SOU.
The second half continued with both teams fighting to keep it close, while exchanging buckets on both ends of the floor. Oregon Tech quickly brought the game back and overtook SOU by 6 points, but the lead would not be held for long. The two nationally ranked teams slugged their way through the second half keeping the score close, neither teams ever exceeding a 6-point lead.
In the final minute on the game, the home Raiders extended their lead one last time and held on. Tate Hoffman, sinking two free throws, gave SOU a 6-point lead with just :10 seconds remaining on the clock. Sophomore guard,Mitchell Fink ran the floor and drained a long 3-pointer under pressure, cutting the lead to 3 points. An inbound play for SOU saw Oregon Tech in a high pressure trap, forcing the Raiders guard out of bounds for a Tech ball. The Owls inbound play saw them take the quick easy 2-points. With just 1 point separating the teams and :03 seconds on the clock, SOU was able to run the floor and find a layup to secure the game with a score of 106-109.
The game saw 13 lead changes and 13 tied scores, while SOU had two players in double digits for the evening. Tristen Holmes scored 26 points, and Bed DeSaulnier put up 22 points of his own. The Owls were led by Mitchell Fink on the night with a double-double of 24 points and 10 assists, while he had five teammates all in double digits.
The Owls return home to Danny Miles Court for the Lithia – Oregon Tech Classic, with games on Friday at 7:30pm against Montana State University – Northern, and Saturday at 7:30pm against William Jessup University
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