College Place, Wash. – Walla Walla men's basketball finished their season series against No. 18-Ranked Southern Oregon on Friday afternoon. A 21-0 run in the first half keyed Southern Oregon to a 86-49 victory, as the Wolves dropped to 3-5 in conference play while the Raiders picked up win number six to improve to 6-2.
Game two between the teams would start in a defensive battle. Both teams struggled to find any offensive rhythm in the first six-plus minutes of the half, as the Wolves held a slim 7-6 lead. The teams would then continue to exchange baskets over the next couple of minutes as the score sat in a 13-13 tie.
The Wolves finally found some breathing room, putting together a quick 5-0 run to take an 18-13 lead, but it was short-lived. The Raiders erased the Wolves lead and went on a decisive 21-0 run in a seven-minute stretch to extend the lead out to double digits at 34-18.
Zayne Browning finally stopped the scoring drought, knocking down a three-pointer right before the half. The Raiders went into the half with a 36-21 lead, holding the Wolves to three points in the final eight minutes.
The Raiders held the Wolves to 28-percent shooting in the first half while shooting 48-percent.
The Raiders maintained a double-digit lead for all of the second half, as the lead stretched to its largest at 27 midway through the second half and ballooned to 30-plus in the final stages of the half. The Raiders would empty their bench and cruise to the win, as the Wolves could not rebound from the first-half offensive flurry by the Raiders.
The Raiders were again efficient on offense, putting in 48 of their 84 points in the paint, dishing out 17 assists while shooting 46-percent in the game. The Raiders also shot 91-percent from the free-throw line (21-for-23) while the Wolves struggled to get to the line, shooting only 3-for-6 in the game.
The Wolves were led
Zayne Browning, who was the lone Wolves player to register double-digits with 18 points.
Walla Walla will pick up action when they travel to Caldwell, Idaho to take on another ranked opponent again next Saturday, January 18 against No. 5-Ranked The College of Idaho. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. (MST).
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