LA GRANDE – Malachi Afework's three-point play with 1:10 remaining put Eastern Oregon ahead by a point and served as the deciding bucket in a 70-67 defeat of Southern Oregon in Cascade Conference action Saturday at Quinn Coliseum.

The Mountaineers (5-2 overall, 1-1 CCC) and Raiders (5-3, 0-2) went back and forth in the second half, where neither team led by more than four over the final 10 minutes. Elijah Jackson got to the basket to give SOU its last lead at 67-65 with 1:34 left, but Afework came down on the ensuing possession and hit a midrange jumper while absorbing a bump to the arm.

The Raiders took over their final possession trailing by one with 32 seconds on the clock. They elected to run it down but couldn't get off an attempt out of a timeout, losing the ball as the shot-clock buzzer sounded.

Jackson had a career-high 20 points in the loss, hitting 8-of-14 from the field. The senior guard scored 16 in the second half, where the Raiders faced an early seven-point deficit before seizing momentum with a 10-0 run.

Joe Juhala recorded 13 points and five rebounds off the bench. Mason Whittaker shot 3-of-5 from 3-point range to score 11.

Afework came up clutch repeatedly, pouring in all 10 of his points in the second half off the bench. Garrett Hawkes led the Mountaineers with 20 points.

The Raiders are on the road again next Saturday, facing rival Oregon Tech in Klamath Falls.