LEWISTON, Idaho – LC State Men's Basketball defeated the Mountaineers of Eastern Oregon 65-55 Saturday in the P1FCU Activity Center.
Khalil Stevenson led the Warriors with 17 points and
Brennen Newsom added seven rebounds to spark the Warrior offense throughout the game.
Stevenson started the Warriors off with back-to-back buckets to give the team an early advantage. Newsom followed with a jumper and then a block on the defensive end and a strong rebound by
Silas Bennion provided a spark on the court and from the bench.
A put back from Newsom gave the Warriors an 11-4 lead over the Mountaineers with about 14 minutes of play to go in the half. The Mountaineers cut it within four with a 3 but a layup followed by a 3 from Stevenson extended the lead.
Colton Spencer made a 3 with just over 11 minutes to go in the first half and gave the Warriors a 19-7 advantage to force a timeout. Eastern Oregon brought the game within nine, but a strong offensive rebound from
Al Sommerfield kept play alive and shortly after,
Oreon Courtney had a slam to keep the energy high in the gym.
With 5:19 on the clock, Sommerfield gave the Warriors a 3 and cushioned the lead with a score of 24-14. A pair of free throws from Newsom followed by a 3 from Sommerfield extended the score to 29-15. Off an assist from Stevenson, Newsom followed with a jumper to maintain the momentum. The Warriors went into the locker room at half with a lead of 31-21. Stevenson led with 10 points and four Warriors tied with a lead of five rebounds going into the second half.
In the second half, a layup from Newsom off an assist in the paint from Bennion gave the Warriors a 10-point lead with plenty of time on the clock. After creating space for himself in the paint, Stevenson followed with an athletic layup under the basket. With 16:18 on the clock, the Mountaineers made a 3 and immediately forced a turnover on the other end to give the team a spark and cut the Warrior lead to five points. The Mountaineers used this energy to fuel a couple of offensive runs that brought them within four reach with 13:27 left in the game.
The Warriors killed the Mountaineer run with a layup from Spencer immediately out of the timeout. The Mountaineers continued to contest with a 3 on the other end but Spencer once again stepped up with a jumper to better the lead. A steal from
Sam Stockton and then a give and go to the bucket between Stockton and Stevenson, provided another bucket for the Warriors. Off an assist from
Kai Warren, Bennion added a 3 to make it 48-38 at 9:55 and this kept the Warrior offense in the game.
Courtney and Stevenson were active on the floor in helping the Warriors maintain their lead and with just under five minutes to go, the Warriors held the Mountaineers off 53-46. Sommerfield gave the team a 3 at 4:05 to create a 10-point difference and grabbed a dominant rebound to slow down the Warrior offense a bit and this allowed Stevenson to get to the free throw line. Newsom came in clutch with a dunk off an assist from Stevenson to make it 62-48 with 58 seconds left in the game.
A foul on Eastern Oregon brought Bennion to the free throw line with 43 seconds to go and this brought in a point to make it 63-52. Newsom was key again with another dunk to cap off the game and send the Warriors into the locker room with a 65-55 victory over the Mountaineers.
Stevenson led the Warriors in points with 17, Newsom had 15, and Sommerfield added 12. Newsom led in rebounds with six and Stevenson and Bennion tied in assists with six.
As a team, the Warriors shot 46 percent from the field, hit 10 3-pointers and outrebounded the Mountaineers 44-31.
Warrior Basketball is back on Tuesday, Feb. 8 in the P1FCU Activity Center at 7:30 p.m. as they take on Walla Walla.
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at lcwarriors.com or on social media @LCWarriors.
