7:30 p.m. Friday - SOU at #16 Eastern Oregon – Live Stats/Stream
7:30 p.m. (MT) Saturday - SOU at #25 College of Idaho – Live Stats/Stream
CCC Standings/Statistics

ASHLAND – Plenty is left to be decided in the final two weeks of the Cascade Conference regular-season schedule, and the Southern Oregon men's basketball team will be right in the middle of all the haggling for postseason positioning.

The Raiders (17-9 overall, 11-5 CCC) are tied in fourth place with 25th-ranked College of Idaho (18-8, 11-5) and one game behind No. 16 Eastern Oregon (19-6, 12-4) entering the home stretch. They'll visit the Mountaineers on Friday attempting to complete a season sweep, and they'll be at C of I on Saturday trying to salvage a regular-season split with the Yotes.

Regardless of the outcomes, there'll be consequential work left to do. Northwest Christian, currently ranked sixth and one game ahead of Oregon Tech in first place, comes to Ashland on Feb. 18, and seventh-place Corban is in town for the finale the following day. The Raiders have already clinched a CCC tournament berth, but a top-four finish would give them a first-round home game for the fifth year in a row.

Last Week in Review: Tristen Holmes scored a career-high 32 points last Tuesday at Oregon Tech, but 26 of those were scored in the second half with the Raiders already in too deep a hole on their way to a 99-85 loss. The Owls, now ranked 15th, were nearly flawless in the first half as they shot 22-of-41 from the field with seven 3-pointers and just one turnover. SOU bounced back with a 90-73 win Friday at Walla Walla behind Ben DeSaulnier's 23 points, a Holmes double-double (18 points, 10 rebounds), and Jordan Hunt's 19 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks. The Raiders outscored WWU 40-18 over the final 13 minutes.

Briefly:
– Along with his big game at Walla Walla, Jordan Hunt scored a career-high 21 points at Oregon Tech. In four games since sustaining an injury against EOU, he's averaged 13.8 points on 59-percent shooting (20-of-34). He had to sit out SOU's first meeting with C of I.
– Tristen Holmes has been racking up most of his big numbers lately after halftime: In the second halves of SOU's last nine games, he's shot 62 percent (44-of-71) with averages of 14.2 points and 3.1 assists. In conference play he ranks ninth in scoring (15.2), fourth in assists (14.1), 10th in field-goal percentage (53.6) and 19th in rebounding (5.3).
– Since going 2-for-11 combined in SOU's first matchups against EOU and C of I, Ben DeSaulnier has posted 21.7 points per game and shot 53 percent in six outings. He owns the fourth-highest scoring average (18.2) in CCC play.
– The Raiders remain reliant on 3-point shooting: In their CCC wins, they've averaged 10.5 makes on 42-percent accuracy; and in their CCC losses, they've averaged 6.2 makes on 32-percent accuracy.

About Eastern Oregon:
– Friday will mark the 185th matchup in the series between SOU and EOU, which the Raiders lead 101-83. They secured a 97-94 upset of the Mountaineers (then ranked fifth) on Jan. 14 behind 27 points from Holmes and 21 more from Kenny Meyer.
– The Mounties had won four straight until an 84-70 loss last Saturday at Warner Pacific. They've yet to drop a conference home game, but have lost three of their last four against SOU in La Grande.
– Senior forward Bryan McGriff, who lit up SOU for 30 points the first time around, leads the CCC in scoring (22.5) and is second in rebounding (11.2). Around him, the Mounties lead the league in 3-point makes per game (10.9). Max McCullough has accounted for 61 (he's made 16 in their last eight games) on a 45-percent clip.

About College of Idaho:
– Joey Nebeker powered C of I's 87-81 win over SOU on Jan. 15 in Ashland, going 9-for-13 with 24 points while the Yotes held the Raiders to 42-percent shooting – the lowest mark on their home floor since the 2011-12 season.
– SOU leads the head-to-head series, 36-29. Last season's 85-79 win was just SOU's second in its last 10 trips to Caldwell, however.
– Of the Yotes' eight losses, five have been by four points or less.
– C of I leads the CCC in opponents' shooting (40.4) and scoring (69.9) and three of its players are among the CCC's top-five in steals – Emmanuel Morgan (2.3), Aitor Zubizarreta (1.8) and Nebeker (1.7).