Box Score OLYMPIA – The Evergreen State College ended an 11-game losing skid with an outstanding 40-minute effort Friday night in a 73-71 Cascade Collegiate Conference men's basketball win over the visiting Oregon Tech Owls at CRC Gymnasium.

Winning for the first time since a Dec. 10 non-conference victory at Pacific Lutheran, the Geoducks improved to 4-16 overall and to 1-12 in the CCC. Oregon Tech is now 13-11 overall and 6-8 in the conference after losing for the fifth time in six games.

Throughout the season, Evergreen first-year head coach Tim Malroy has preached hard work and focusing on each new game. There have been some big losses in conference play, but more recently the Geoducks have been close, such as recent road defeats against Corban and Northwest. Tonight, they put one in the win column.

"What I have observed in every game this year is that we play like we're 0-0 in our record," Malroy said, "and we play every game like this is the next one and let's get this one. We've preached that too, that just because you lost the game before it has no bearing on how you play the next game, everything is fresh. Up at Northwest we played really well and we probably could have won that game if we had hit a few shots. Tonight we hit a few of those shots down the stretch and got the 'W.' I'm really proud of them."

Alix Hernandez, who notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, scoring the winning basket with about 14 seconds left in the game.

Oregon Tech had tied the scored on a pair of Duncan Schramm free throws with 44 seconds to play, and after taking a timeout the Geoducks worked the clock down. Hernandez, a 6-1 forward, worked his way along the right baseline past the basket and then spun the ball back off the glass and through the hoop.
The Owls had a chance to either tie or win but Josh Johnson's three-point attempt from the left side hit off the side of the rim and bounded away, giving the Geoducks the much-needed victory. Johnson got the open look when Evergreen doubled OIT's leading scorer, Lavar Moore, who is a 45 percent shooter from beyond the arc.

There were a total of seven ties and seven lead changes in the contest, most of those in the second half, and neither team had a double-digit lead.

Oregon Tech led through the game's first 12 1/2 minutes, though never by more than six points, until Evergreen tied the score at 24-24 on a Jarrick Mitchell three-point basket with 7:25 on the clock. The hosts took their first lead exactly one minute later on a three-pointer by Hernandez, and they eventually took a 40-36 lead into halftime.

After the Geoducks took an eight-point lead at 47-38 on a Jordan Dam three, the Owls rallied to tie it at 49-49, and from then on it was close. In fact, over the final 13 minutes there were six ties and five lead changes.

In addition to Hernandez getting his double-double, the Geoducks got 17 points from Jordan Dam and 16 more from Brock Otis. Hernandez led his team with four assists.

For one of the few times this season Evergreen shot the ball better than its opponents, going 27-for-51, or 53 percent, compared to 25-for-65, or 39 percent, for the Owls.

Moore, the conference's leading scorer at 23 points per game, was held 10 under his season average under the watch of Marquise Doss and Mitchell. Kyle Waits had a big game for the Owls with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Schramm came off the bench to score 17 points.

Evergreen was able to pull out the victory despite being out-rebounded, 44-24.

The Geoducks return to action at 7:30 p.m. Saturday when they host nationally ranked Southern Oregon.