holmes
Al Case, Ashland Daily Photo
89
Corban University CRB 15-15, 8-12
91
Winner Southern Oregon SOU 18-12, 12-8
Corban University CRB
15-15, 8-12
89
Final
91
Southern Oregon SOU
18-12, 12-8
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Corban University CRB 40 49 89
Southern Oregon SOU 35 56 91

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | SOU Sports Information

Raiders edge Corban to claim No. 5 seed in conference tourney

ASHLAND – Southern Oregon ended the regular season on a high note Sunday, coming through in the clutch to top Corban, 91-89, at Mountain Avenue Gym. To keep their season alive, though, the Raiders will need a little more magic.

Sophomore point guard Tristen Holmes hit a pair of free throws to break a tie with 4.9 seconds left, finishing with 20 points, eight assists and six rebounds while lifting the Raiders' record to 18-12 overall and 12-8 in the Cascade Conference. They claimed the No. 5 seed in the CCC tourney, putting them in the quarterfinals Wednesday at 15th-ranked Oregon Tech, which finished in a three-way tie for second place with a 15-5 record but found itself on the short end of a tiebreaker and got the No. 4 seed.

The Owls took all three regular-season meetings against the Raiders, including two in Klamath Falls.

With the loss, Corban (15-15, 8-12) dropped to the No. 8 seed and will start at league champion Northwest Christian. Sixth-seeded Northwest (Wash.) plays at third-seeded College of Idaho and seventh-seeded Warner Pacific plays at No. 2 seed Eastern Oregon in the other quarterfinals.

The Raiders trailed by as many as eight early in the second half but got back in it thanks to Holmes' 16 second-half points and 15 from Ben Desaulnier. Tied at 87 with 13 seconds left, Holmes hit a contested 17-footer at the end of the shot clock to give SOU the lead. On the other end, though, A.J. Monterossi was fouled in the paint and made two free throws to tie it with six seconds to play.

That sequence triggered a bizarre finish: When Holmes caught the ensuing inbounds pass, he appeared to be fouled intentionally by Caleb Herzberg near halfcourt. He made both of his free shots, and Chris Martin's contested shot near the bucket for Corban hit the bottom of the backboard as the buzzer sounded.

Monterossi's 20 points and nine assists spurred the Warriors, who led for 29 minutes of the game. Martin scored 17 off the bench, and Jake Love had 15 points and eight rebounds.

Jordan Hunt matched Holmes' output with 20 points of his own for SOU, also adding nine rebounds and four blocks before fouling out. DeSaulnier scored 19 with six assists, Kenny Meyer had 13 and Conor Carroll added eight.

The Raiders have won their last 12 home games against Corban.
 
Print Friendly Version