COLLEGE PLACE, Wash. — The Walla Walla Men's Basketball team led for much of the first half, but it was Southern Oregon that came away with a tight 92-87 victory in a Cascade Conference contest on Saturday night at Windemuth Court.

The Wolves are still searching for that elusive first win with a record of 0-12 overall and 0-6 in the CCC. The Raiders improved to 8-6 on the season and 5-1 in conference play.

Soren Dalan had 18 of his 26 points in the first half and shot 12-of-19 from the field overall. Reese Snellman recorded the second-most assists since Walla Walla joined the NAIA in 2009 with 12 assists and completed the double-double with 10 points with seven rebounds. Jordan Jackson added 17 points and Chike Ezeonu finished with 10 points.

Gio Evanson led Southern Oregon with 30 points on 11-of-15 shooting. Brady Rice added 17 points and Elijah Jackson had a fantastic game with 16 points and led SOU with nine rebounds and six assists.

The Wolves won the battle inside and outscored Southern Oregon 46-36 in the paint. Walla Walla shot 50% from the field and had 22 second chance points on 15 offensive boards.

The Raiders shot 46.9% from the field and won the close rebound battle 38-36. SOU scored 15 points off the 10 turnovers and had 61 bench points led by Evanson and Rice.

WWU scored the first five points of the game and pushed the advantage to double digits after a 3 by Jackson. The Wolves led 24-14 with 12:03 left in the first half. Walla Walla held on to the lead until Luke Wagstaff finished inside with 6:42 remaining in the half to knot the game up at 27-27.

The two teams traded baskets over the next few minutes, but it was SOU that finished the first half strong and took a five-point advantage into the locker room.

Walla Walla got the gap down to a single possession several times in the second half, but was never able to erase the deficit fully. The Wolves got within three on a Jackson layup with 2:08 remaining. The Raiders scored four consecutive points to stretch the lead, but WWU pulled back within three with 49 seconds to go. Evanson converted inside on the following possession and Southern Oregon held off the Wolves for the victory.

UP NEXT

Walla Walla goes on the road next week against Corban on Friday and Bushnell on Saturday.

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