PORTLAND, Ore. – Looking to win their second straight, the Evergreen Geoducks gave it everything they had but couldn’t get the victory, falling to the Concordia Cavaliers, 103-92, in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Friday night at Cavalier Gymnasium in Portland, Ore.
After Concordia, who is among those receiving votes in the latest NAIA Division II Top 25, took the early lead on Evergreen, the Geoducks tightened their belts and got back into it. With the lead changed 12 times in the opening half, Evergreen used a layup by Marc Taylor (Boise, Idaho/Skyview HS/Edmonds CC) with six seconds left to take the 47-43 lead into halftime.
The Geoducks held onto the lead over the opening minutes of the second period until a three-pointer by Tyler Velasquez tied it up at 54-54 and then two possessions later, Adam Herman hit a pair of free throws to put the Cavs up by two with 13:24 left on the clock. Concordia pushed the lead to double-digits with 9:24 left to go and the high-scoring Cavs held on for the win, 103-92.
Evergreen was led by 33 points from Kyle Calhoun (Seattle, Wash./Hazen HS/Marshalltown CC), including eight three-pointers. Dre Taylor (Seattle, Wash./Garfield HS/North Idaho College) added 16 points while Marc Taylor finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds to earn the double-double. The Geoducks held a slight advantage on the glass, outrebounding Concordia 37 to 36.
Concordia was led by 29 points from Velasquez. Herman finished with 22 points, with 14 of those coming on free throws, while Anthony Holton finished with 15 points. Willy Ligon came off the bench to score 14 points and Esvan Middleton earned the double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds to round out the Cavaliers in double-digit scoring.
The Geoducks will look to get a win on Saturday night as they remain in Portland to take on Warner Pacific. Tip with the Knights is set for 7:30 p.m. at C.C. Perry Gymnasium.