EUGENE, Ore. – The Northwest Christian University men's basketball team improved to 12-3 for just the second time in the NAIA-era, sweeping a road series from The Evergreen State College and Northwest University to close out the 2018 portion of the schedule.
 
The Beacons (12-3, 4-1 CCC) remain in second place in the Cascade Collegiate Conference after shooting 51% over the weekend winning both games despite being out-rebounded in each.
 
Northwest Christian 108, Evergreen 71
 
NCU rolled out to a 56-36 halftime lead and never looked back, posting their second-highest scoring total ever for a Cascade Collegiate Conference game. The Beacons shot 57% from the field and collected another 18 steals, lifting their CCC-leading total to 146. NCU leads the nation in swipes, averaging 11.2 per contest.
 
Head Coach Eddie Alexander said, "This was a huge team-oriented win for us. Tyrus and Davonte caught fire after a slow start and got the team rolling. Our bench was great and everyone played with a high amount of energy."
 
The Beacons shot 12-for-27 from three-point range with Tyrus Hosley (6-for-7) and Davonte Cleveland (3-for-3) doing most of the damage. Zach Sly added another three as the trio combined to shoot 75% from deep.
 
No starter played more than 25 minutes as the Beacons were able to rest on the opening night of a tough road-trip. Nine bench players combined for 50 points, outscoring their Evergreen counterparts by 20.
 
Hosley finished with a game-high 25 points, adding three assists and three steals as he shot 8-for-11 from the field. Cleveland scored 15 with three assists and three steals and Sly finished with 13 points, three assists and two steals. Ernest Ugoagu scored 14 with two blocks and Austin Tyner scored just seven points but led the Beacons with seven rebounds.
 
Evergreen had four players in double-figures led by 11 apiece from Malik Redmond and Elijah Fuller. Desmond Hudson and Mana Niu came off the bench to score 10 apiece. The Geoducks shot 36% from the field and out-rebounded the Beacons 46-36. 26 turnovers proved to be too much to overcome.
 
Northwest Christian 81, Northwest 73
 
Heading into Kirkland for what proves to be one of the most difficult road games each year, the Beacons survived a tough challenge as the beat the Eagles for their third straight win. "Northwest did a great job attacking our lack of size," said Alexander, "but this team never quits and continues to fight as hard as any that I have ever coached. Logan Davis provided energy on defense to keep us on track in the first half and our fight was tremendous tonight in the second half when we struggled to shoot the ball."
 
After trading three early leads, NCU took the advantage for good at the 6:33 mark of the first half as Sly collected a steal and took it coast-to-coast.
 
The Beacons never trailed from that point, but continued to fight off numerous strong challenges from the Eagles. After opening the second-half with eight straight points to take a 12-point lead, NCU briefly went cold from the field, missing seven straight shots. NU rallied with 11 straight points to climb within one, 48-47 with 15:07 remaining on a jumper from Ryan Ricks. 
 
An 11-3 run placed NCU back ahead by nine and later a layup from Cleveland gave the visitors a 65-52 advantage with ten minutes to play. Northwest again climbed back to within five, but Reece Robinson put the team on his back over the final three minutes, hitting a pair of clutch three-pointers to ice the victory.
 
Tyner finished with a game-high 22 points, adding six rebounds and three steals. Robinson scored 15 and Hosley ended the night with 12 points and seven assists. Shawn Carson led the team with eight rebounds and two blocks while Cleveland finished with eight points, five assists and a game-high four steals.
 
Northwest (10-9, 2-5) was led by Hussayn Ford, scoring a double-double with 21 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Ricks finished with 15 points while Josh Meyer chipped in 12 and Arturo Palacios posted 11.
 
The Beacons return home to the Morse Event Center for a pair of crucial Cascade Collegiate Conference clashes to open the 2019 slate. On Friday they will host Multnomah (9-5, 3-2) in a battle of the top two scoring teams in the CCC. The Lions are number one in the NAIA, averaging 104 points per game while the Beacons are fourth, averaging 93.6 ppg. On Saturday, NCU will welcome No. 20 Warner Pacific (10-5, 2-3) into the Morse Event Center. Coach Alexander said, "This will be a big homestand for us. Multnomah is a team that can really get hot quickly with some great shooters and WPU is always tough and physical. We have a lot of work to do this week but we are up for the challenge."