7:30 p.m. Friday – SOU at Northwest Christian – Live Stats/Stream
7:30 p.m. Saturday – SOU at Corban – Live Stats/Stream

ASHLAND – After sitting on a frustrating loss at Oregon Tech for nine days, the Southern Oregon men's basketball team could use a clean weekend on the road.

And with their next five games to be played against unranked opponents, now would be an ideal time for the Raiders (10-6 overall, 5-2 Cascade Conference) to get hot if their CCC championship aspirations are to be taken seriously. The stretch begins with tests at Northwest Christian (6-8, 2-5) on Friday and Corban (11-6, 5-4) on Saturday. Both games are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. tipoffs.

NAIA Top 25: SOU fell from No. 9 to 23rd in Tuesday's latest NAIA Division II coaches' poll, which was the first released in four weeks – a period in which the Raiders went 3-3. Moving ahead of them were No. 8 College of Idaho (12-5, 6-1), No. 16 Warner Pacific (13-4, 8-1) and No. 20 Oregon Tech (14-5, 7-2), which have each lost in Ashland this season. Cornerstone (Mich.) was voted the unanimous No. 1. Rankings will be released every other week for the remainder of the season.

Last Time Out: SOU fell behind early and never recovered in an 88-73 loss at Oregon Tech on Jan. 2, a few days removed from a weekend sweep of Warner Pacific and Multnomah. Tristen Holmes recorded 15 points and five rebounds, but the Raiders were unable to overcome 52-percent shooting by OIT or 21 turnovers, 10 of which were accounted for by offensive fouls. The regular-season rubber match between the rivals is set for Jan. 31 in Ashland.

Briefly:
– SOU is the only team with three players among the top-20 in conference scoring average: Ben DeSaulnier (16.4), Kenny Meyer (14.3) and Tristen Holmes (14.0). Holmes also ranks seconds in assists (6.6) and ninth in rebounds (6.7), and is the only player in the CCC among the league leaders in all three categories.
– In the three games since their holiday break, the Raiders struggled from 3-point range with 29-percent shooting (22-of-77). Prior to that stretch, they'd been shooting 41 percent with an average of 9.4 makes per game.
– Following the wins over Warner Pacific and Multnomah, Meyer was named the CCC Player of the Week for the first time in his career. He's averaged 15.1 points on 46-percent shooting from the field with 4.1 assists over SOU's last seven games, the most prolific such stretch of his career.
– In their wins, the Raiders have shot 81 percent from the free-throw line (183-of-227). In their losses, they've shot 71 percent (94-of-132).

About Northwest Christian:
– The Beacons won the last two CCC regular-season titles but lost all but one starter from last year's team. After enduring a stretch in which they lost seven of eight, they've won two of their last three coming into the weekend.
– Senior forward Michael Loomis has transformed into one of the top scorers in the CCC, averaging 17.6 points on 51-percent shooting. He's helped the Beacons average 90.1 points per game; they've hit triple digits in each of their last three.
– SOU is seeking its first win at NCU since the 2012-13 season. The Raiders lead the head-to-head series, 27-24.

About Corban:
– The Warriors remain one of the most dangerous teams in the conference, returning the bulk of a roster that finished eighth in the regular season but won the CCC tournament last season. They're 7-0 at home this season but 0-3 against teams that currently have winning records in the conference.
– They've gotten consistent play from senior point guard AJ Monterossi (12.9 points, 4.9 assists) and junior center Joel Johnson (14.1 points, 6.6 rebounds). But their leading scorer, Chris Martin (15.6 points), is one of the streakiest shooters in the country: In last year's CCC championship game at Oregon Tech, he went 10-of-11 on 3-point attempts in the second half.
– SOU has the edge in the all-time series, 43-42, and has won in four of its last five trips to Salem. Of the last seven matchups, two went to overtime and four were decided by two or three points in regulation.