LEWISTON, Idaho –
Khalil Stevenson made sure his senior night was one to remember. The longest tenured LC State Men's Basketball player led the Warriors in a comeback for the ages to upset Oregon Tech in the regular-season finale and keep LC's hopes alive for a home game during Cascade Conference postseason tournament. Down 39-33 at the half, the Warriors rallied back to take down one of the top teams in the conference by a final of 69-67.
"This group continues to find ways to compete and close out games," Head Coach
Austin Johnson said. "Tonight was an unbelievable exhibition of our toughness and togetherness. Khalil had an unbelievable senior night.
Will Abram gave us a defensive presence and hit some huge free throws. Silas (Bennion) had one of his best games of the year. Just super proud of these guys and how they keep improving. Hopefully this group can create some more special moments down the stretch."
OIT jumped in front early to hold a slim lead over LC State in the first minutes of the first half. A layup by
Silas Bennion brought the Warriors within one (16-15), but the Owls surged ahead to push their advantage to 29-18 by 8:25.
A 3-pointer by Stevenson and two free throws by
Nathan Fromm cut the deficit to four in the last 30 seconds of the half, but a last-second basket sent OIT into the locker room with a 39-33 lead.
The comeback ramped up in the second half. After an opening 3 by OIT,
Oreon Courtney found the basket for a layup and
Al Sommerfield hit a 3 before Bennion capped the run with a free throw to make it 42-39. A triple by Bennion tied things up 44-44 at 14:57, but a short burst by the Owls made it a 58-48 difference with 8:08 to play.
Stevenson sparked a key run for the Warriors with a layup in the final five minutes.
Will Abram kept the energy going with a dunk before an and-one play by Courtney had LC within two (63-61) with 3:09 on the clock.
Stevenson went back-to-back to tie the game 65-65 before a layup by Fromm put LC in front in the final minute. Two free throws from Abram gave the Warriors the cushion they needed to survive a final push by the Owls and earn the victory.
Stevenson led the game with 22 points and six rebounds. He was 9-for-16 from the floor. Bennion added 14 points, four assists and two steals, and Courtney chipped in 12 points, six rebounds and two steals. Fromm and Abram each scored seven points, and Abram went 5-for-6 from the foul line.
The Warriors await the announcement from the Cascade Conference as to where they will be playing on Wednesday in the CCC quarterfinals. Stay tuned to social media and lcwarriors.com for updates.
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