ASHLAND – Southern Oregon was sharp again offensively, shut down Bushnell's top scorers on the defensive end, and used an explosive second half to run away with a 96-65 decision on Friday night at Lithia Motors Pavilion.

The Raiders' seventh win in their last eight games made them 15-7 overall and 10-6 in the CCC, giving them sole possession of fourth place a few weeks after sitting in eighth. Five different players scored 11 or more for the second consecutive outing – Elijah Jackson paced the group with 17 on a 7-of-13 effort and four assists – and a 21-4 run over a five-minute span in the second half turned a tight game into a laugher.

Joe Juhala went 4-of-5 with 14 points, a pair of 3-pointers and six rebounds for the Raiders, who hit at 53% from the field. Gabe Reichle amassed 13 points, four steals and three assists, Mason Whittaker scored 10 of his 12 and posted two blocks during the first half, and Liam Clark came off the bench to go 5-of-6 with 11 points and five boards.

The Raiders' league-best 3-point defense cornered Bushnell (10-13, 6-11) into a 2-of-23 display from downtown. They also held the Beacons' leading scorers, Squeeky Johnson and Cory Johnson, to 13 points combined.

SOU trailed for the last time at 25-23 with just over 11 minutes gone before a pair of Whittaker 3-pointers sparked a half-ending 18-8 surge.

The leader was never under eight in the second, where the Raiders rang up 40 points within the first 12 minutes of play. Jackson was perfect on four attempts with 10 points and Juhala scored nine during the period.

Bryce Dyer flirted with another double-double in just 22 minutes of action, totaling eight points on three field-goal attempts, seven rebounds and four assists. Emmett Fenz added six for a bench that outscored Bushnell's by a 32-15 margin.

The Raiders also committed just six turnovers, forced 15, and went 15-of-18 at the free-throw line.

Kaleb Burnett tallied a game-high 25 points on 11-of-17 shooting for the Beacons, who couldn't keep pace with a 32% mark in the second half.

Three teams are a half-game behind SOU in a tie for fifth place. One of those, Corban, visits at 5 p.m. Saturday a month and a half after edging the Raiders 67-62 in Salem.