5:30 p.m. Tuesday – Oregon Tech at SOU | Live Stats
5:30 p.m. Friday – Warner Pacific at SOU | Live Stats
3 p.m. Saturday – Multnomah at SOU | Live Stats
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ASHLAND – With the widest margin of victory against its rival since 1980, No. 23 Southern Oregon established the clear upper hand over Oregon Tech last month in Klamath Falls. Maintaining it doesn't figure to be such a breeze on Tuesday.

After being jolted that night, the Owls (13-6 overall) steadied themselves with six wins in a row and currently sit at 9-4 in the Cascade Conference. Like the Raiders (14-5, 10-3), three of their losses have been accounted for by first-place Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) and second-place Eastern Oregon, which have begun separating themselves from the pack in the race for the CCC title.

The third-place Raiders enter the week a game up on both OIT and Bushnell, and keeping their hold on a top-three spot figures to be critical when it comes to at-large consideration for the NAIA National Tournament. They're attempting to complete their second straight series sweep of the Owls. While concluding their five-game homestand on Friday and Saturday, they'll also go for sweeps of Warner Pacific and Multnomah.

LAST WEEK IN REVIEW: SOU fell 71-56 on Friday against a No. 16-ranked Eastern Oregon team that is transforming into a buzzsaw – the Mountaineers were up by as many as 34 points the next day at OIT – as the Raiders' home CCC winning streak ended at 15 games. A slow start that saw them trail EOU 23-7 after one quarter doomed the Raiders, but they bounced back against College of Idaho on Saturday and led by as many as 17 before the Yotes stormed back to force overtime. Ultimately, Kami Walk's 22 points, 12 rebounds and four steals pushed them over the top for a 72-67 triumph: She dropped in two buckets early in OT to allow them to lead for the duration of the extra session. Danasia Allison stepped up with 10 points and eight rebounds. Three more steals apiece for her and Makayla Scurlock helped the Raiders force 21 turnovers.

NAIA TOP 25: A new edition of the NAIA coaches' poll will be released on Wednesday. The Raiders, sitting at No. 23, are 2-2 during the current ratings period that began on Jan. 11, and four of their five losses on the season have been against teams currently among the top-16. Lewis-Clark State (Idaho), which has won 18 in a row, is likely to move up from its No. 10 perch, as is EOU from the No. 16 spot. The Raiders began the season unranked and have now made Top 25 appearances seven of the last nine seasons.

BRIEFLY:

• Kami Walk is coming off of her best weekend of the season, having shot 12-of-23 from the field to average 17 points and 9.5 rebounds over two games. The double-double against C of I was her third in 2022-23 and the 14^th of her Raider career; it also marked her fourth 20-point, 10-rebound effort. The junior is now 55 points away from becoming the 20^th member of SOU's 1,000-point club and six rebounds away (at 541) from taking over the No. 16 spot in the Raider record book. In CCC play, she ranks 11^th in points (12.4), ninth in rebounds (7.5) and 14^th in blocked shots (0.7). She's also among the leaders in free-throw percentage (80.4, 8^th) and 3-point percentage (33.3, 15^th).
• The EOU outing did their numbers no favors, but the Raiders still rank eighth in the NAIA in average points allowed (53.1) and 14^th in defensive rating (76.7 points allowed/100 possessions). The Mountaineers have shot 50 percent and averaged 69 points against them; every other opponent has combined to shoot 31 percent and average 51.2 points. The Raiders have surrendered fewer than 52 points in nine games and won each of them.
• Over her last four games off the bench, Emma Schmerbach has averaged 10.5 points 51.5-percent shooting. The sophomore scored a season-high 18 against EOU, one game after going 5-of-9 at LC State.
• Brianna Phiakhamngon has hit double-figure scoring in 15 of 19 games, ranking sixth in points (14.5), fourth in 3-point percentage (42.0) and sixth in 3-point makes (2.2) during CCC play. She's gone for 20-plus on three occasions, including a 21-point effort at OIT. Her seven assists Saturday against C of I matched a career-high.
• Dating back to last season, the Raiders have won 16 consecutive games in which they've attempted at least 18 free throws.
• The Raiders are 21-2 at home under coach Carlotta Kloppenburg-Pruitt, with a 16-1 mark in conference games. Since the start of 2014, they're 67-9 at home in CCC play.

ABOUT OREGON TECH: Under interim head coach Paul Poetsch – who has roamed the OIT men's sideline as an assistant for 14 seasons – the Owls are succeeding by playing to their strengths, which revolve around sophomore guard Olivia Sprague. Sprague leads all CCC players in points (18.6) and assists (4.1) in CCC play – she's also among the top-three in steals (2.3), 3-point makes (2.5) and 3-point percentage (45.8) – but the Raiders turned her over eight times in their 81-47 romp in Klamath Falls, which saw them make a season-high 12 3s and limit Sprague's teammates to 10-of-42 shooting. They also have the CCC's second-leading scorer in 6-foot-2 junior Maddyson Tull, who averages 15.5 points and shoots 52 percent from the field in conference play. SOU has won six of the last seven matchups and is 42-38 overall in the series. The teams have gone to overtime at least once in three of the previous four seasons.