COLLEGE PLACE, Wash. – Walla Walla (Wash.) laid the groundwork for a classic trap game Friday at Windemuth Court. Taking the direction of
Elijah Jackson and
Joe Juhala, Southern Oregon got out unscathed.
Jackson shot 10-of-12 to score 30 points and Juhala went 11-of-15 with 25, giving the Raiders the upper hand in a 108-98 Cascade Conference shootout. Both totals represented career-highs for the seniors, who combined for 37 in the second half.
The Raiders – also boosted by
Bryce Dyer's sixth double-double of the season, a 13-point, 11-rebound effort – went to 17-7 overall and 12-6 in the CCC with their ninth victory in 10 outings. It was the highest combined-scoring game the team has played in six years, with SOU hitting at 56% and the 11th-place Wolves (4-19, 3-16) at 59% from the field.
The Raiders built a 28-11 lead over the first 10 minutes, sparked in the first half by four 3-pointers from
Jacob Axmaker. Two Wolves prevented them from activating cruise control: 7-footer Soren Dalan, who was 14-of-18 with 31 points, and Andrew Vaughan, who became the team's all-time leading scorer during a 30-point display that required only 17 shots.
Though the lead got down to two with eight minutes left, Jackson's eruption kept SOU in front for the duration. He hit all seven of his attempts with five 3-pointers, four assists and three steals in the second half alone. For his part, Juhala scored 16 points with a pair of 3s over the final 10 minutes.
Axmaker finished with 16 points for the Raiders, supplementing a 13-of-27 charge from beyond the arc. Their biggest advantage, though, was a 17-9 on the offensive glass, where Dyer pulled down seven boards and Juhala had three. It led to a 25-10 edge in second-chance points.
The point total was the Raiders' highest since Nov. 15, 2022. They've averaged 92.6 in their last five games.
They play their final road game of the regular season 6 p.m. Saturday at Lewis-Clark State (Idaho), which – entering Friday night's LC State-Oregon Tech matchup – is one game ahead of SOU in third place.