Eastern Oregon and Benedictine Mesa battled through a tight contest that came down to the final minute, with the Redhawks pulling away for a
74-68 win on Saturday.
First Half
Eastern Oregon opened strong, jumping out to a 4-0 lead behind
Eamon Monahan and
Trent Rogers, but Benedictine Mesa quickly answered with a 12-4 run fueled by
Malik Payton and
Eric Blackwell. The Redhawks built a 16-8 advantage before Eastern Oregon clawed back with a three-pointer from
Isaiah Jones, cutting the margin to 16-13 midway through the half.
Benedictine Mesa regained control late, stretching the lead to 27-18 after baskets from
Damian Zivak and
Khari Dunn. Eastern Oregon stayed close thanks to
Caleb Schroeder's three-point play and
Logan Orchard's layup, but Blackwell's clutch shooting—including a deep three in the final seconds—sent the Redhawks into halftime up
35-29.
Second Half
The Mountaineers came out firing after the break, with Monahan and Orchard sparking a quick run to tie the game at 35-35.
Keilan Torkornoo's layup gave Eastern Oregon a brief lead at 37-35, but Benedictine Mesa answered with a series of baskets from Payton, Robinson, and Zivak to reclaim momentum.
Eastern Oregon fought back behind Torkornoo and
James Bodily, who hit a big three to put the Mountaineers ahead 53-50. The Redhawks responded with back-to-back triples from Blackwell and steady free-throw shooting from Payton and Howard to regain control. Despite late baskets from Hammack and Bodily, Benedictine Mesa closed the game at the line, securing the 74-68 victory.
Key Players:
Looking Ahead: The Redhawks are back on the court on Thursday, December 4
th as they take on Embry-Riddle at home.
