OLYMPIA, Wash. – After going nearly six minutes without a point and having to wait another four minutes after that for a second basket, the Evergreen Geoducks couldn’t overcome an early hole as the 24th-ranked Southern Oregon Raiders collected a 75-56 win in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Saturday night at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

The Raiders (20-8, 11-5 CCC) ran out to the early lead as the Geoducks (2-23, 1-16 CCC) struggled to hit shots.  Southern got up by 17 with 8:26 to go in the first half but Evergreen managed to close the gap back down to 10 with 5:19 left in the opening period.  SOU wrapped up the first half on a 10-0 run, including a jumper by Tim Weber as time expired, to take a 40-20 lead into the break.

In the second half, it was the Geoducks who took control of the game, cutting the gap to just seven with 12:18 to play following a three-pointer by Frankie Johnson (Renton, Wash./Hazen HS).  Southern Oregon eventually woke back up as they were able to extend the lead once against as the Raiders remained in third place in the CCC standings with the 75-56 win.

Evergreen was led by 22 points from Johnson.  Cody Peters (Coupeville, Wash./Western Oregon Univ.) added 12 points for the Geoducks.  Evergreen was strong defensively, picking up 13 steals on 22 SOU turnovers.

Southern was led by 15 points from Kyle Tedder.  Terriel Thomas came off the bench to put in 11 points while Jacob Kaler, Jordan West and David Sturner all finished with 10 points on the night.  The Raiders shot 49.0% on the night, making 24-of-49 attempts from the field.

The Geoducks wrap up the 2012-13 campaign next Saturday when they travel to Northwest.  Tip with the Eagles is set for 7:30 p.m. at NU Pavilion in Kirkland, Wash.

Box Score

OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Oregon Tech Owls held the Evergreen Geoducks to just 34.5% shooting from the field as OIT held on for the 68-54 win in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Friday night at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

The Owls built the early lead as Oregon Tech built a nine-point lead with 14:18 to go in the opening period.  Evergreen battled back to pull within three at the midway point but the defending national champions extended the lead again as the Owls held a 32-26 lead at the break.

In the second half, the Geoducks dug deep and battled back to within one point on a three-pointer by Frankie Johnson (Renton, Wash./Hazen HS) with 15:30 to go in the game.  OIT answered back with a 7-0 run as the lead got into double-digits as Evergreen struggled to get back as Oregon Tech earned the 68-54 win.

Evergreen was led by 14 point from Johnson.  Elzie Dickens (Seattle, Wash./Highline CC) earned the double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds on the night.  The Geoducks held a brief advantage on the boards, outrebounding OIT by a final of 34-33.

Oregon Tech was led by 19 points from Kyle Waits.  David Clarke finished with 11 points and eight rebounds on the night. As a team, the Owls shot 40.4% on the night, making 19-of-47 attempts, including seven three-pointers.

The Geoducks wrap up the home portion of the schedule on Saturday night when they play host to 24th-ranked Southern Oregon.  Tip with the Raiders is set for 7:30 p.m. at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia.

Box Score

PORTLAND, Ore. –  Down by 20 points with 7:39 left to play, the Evergreen Geoducks stormed back to pull within four but they couldn’t complete the comeback, falling to the Concordia Cavaliers 78-67 in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Saturday night at Cavalier Gym in Portland, Ore.

The Geoducks got off to the quick start, as they have in many games this season, as Evergreen led 7-3 with 15:30 left to go in the first half.  CU quickly found their grove and grabbed a lead of their out with seven straight but a three-ball by Frankie Johnson (Renton, Wash./Hazen HS) with 12:46 to go tied the game at 10-10.

After the teams kept things tight for the next few minutes, the Cavs went on a 7-0 run that put them up by nine and another quick four-point run put CU up by 10.  Concordia continued to double-up the Geoducks for the remainder of the half, taking a 38-24 lead into the break.

With plenty of basketball left to play, the Geoducks came storming out in the second half, using a 10-2 run over the first two minutes to pull back within six points at 40-34.  Five straight points by CU’s Willy Ligon pushed the lead back into double digits.  The advantage hit 15 just after the 10 minute mark as Ligon scored his 20th point of the night to put CU up, 56-41.

The lead was pushed the 20 with 7:39 left to play but the Cavaliers found themselves in foul trouble early.  Evergreen cut the gap to 10 as the clock ticked down to just over 2:30 left to play.  Cody Peters (Coupeville, Wash./Western Oregon Univ.) hit a three pointer with 2:19 left to play and Travis Wagner (Federal Way, Wash./Green River CC) hit a three-pointer of his own just 15 second later as the Geoducks pulled within four at 71-67.

Concordia rallied for the final two minutes, using a combination of free throws and open layups to score seven straight to collect the 78-67 win.

Evergreen was led by 16 points from Johnson.  Peters finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds to earn the double-double while Michael Potter (Ridgefield, Wash./Ridgefield HS) put up 11 points in the loss.

Concordia was led by 22 points from Ligon.  Adam Herman finished with 16 points on the night while Kory Kirwan finished with 14.  Robbie Jackson put up 11 points before fouling out with about seven minutes left to play.

The Geoducks return home on Friday night, playing host to Oregon Tech.  Tip with the Owls is set for 7:30 p.m.

Box Score

PORTLAND, Ore. – After a strong start, the Evergreen Geoducks couldn’t stop 14th-ranked Warner Pacific from going on a monster run, falling 78-59 in a Cascade Conference men’s basketball game on Friday night at C.C. Perry Gymnasium in Portland, Ore.

As the first half began, it looked like Evergreen was the nationally-ranked squad as the Geoducks built a 12-4 lead behind strong shooting from the free throw line and a hot Travis Wagner (Federal Way, Wash./Green River CC) from behind the arc.  It wasn’t until the 10:28 mark that the Knights broke into double-digits as Warner Pacific found themselves in unfamiliar territory, trailing early.

Warner Pacific finally took their first lead of the game with 4:25 left to play as Stephen Harris made a pair of free throws but the Geoducks took the lead back with two free throws of their own from freshman Frankie Johnson (Renton, Wash./Hazen HS) just four second later.  Unfortunately for Evergreen, the Knights responded with 17-0 run to finish up the first half up, 40-24.

The Knights continued to pull away as the second half began, scoring six straight to push the lead past 20.  Senior Elzie Dickens (Seattle, Wash./Highline CC) finally ended the Evergreen scoring draught with a made jumper at the 17:54 mark but the differential would prove too much for the Geoducks to overcome as WPC cruised to the 78-59 win.

Evergreen was led by 19 points from Johnson, who finished just one point short of a fourth-straight 20—point game.  Junior Cody Peters (Coupeville, Wash./Western Oregon Univ.) finished with 12 points.  The Geoducks shot 35.8% on the night, making 19-of-53 attempts from the field.

Warner Pacific was led by 17 points from Harris, including a perfect seven-for-seven on free throws.  Marcus Moore and Ryan Parks each added 15 points in the win.  The Knights controlled the glass, bringing down 41 rebounds compared with just 26 for the Geoducks.

The Geoducks  will stay in Portland tonight, traveling to Concordia on Saturday.  Tip with the Cavs is set for 7:30 p.m.

Box Score