Eastern Oregon and Benedictine Mesa battled through a tight contest that came down to the final minute, with the Redhawks pulling away for a 74-68 win on Saturday.

First Half
Eastern Oregon opened strong, jumping out to a 4-0 lead behind Eamon Monahan and Trent Rogers, but Benedictine Mesa quickly answered with a 12-4 run fueled by Malik Payton and Eric Blackwell. The Redhawks built a 16-8 advantage before Eastern Oregon clawed back with a three-pointer from Isaiah Jones, cutting the margin to 16-13 midway through the half.

Benedictine Mesa regained control late, stretching the lead to 27-18 after baskets from Damian Zivak and Khari Dunn. Eastern Oregon stayed close thanks to Caleb Schroeder's three-point play and Logan Orchard's layup, but Blackwell's clutch shooting—including a deep three in the final seconds—sent the Redhawks into halftime up 35-29.

Second Half
The Mountaineers came out firing after the break, with Monahan and Orchard sparking a quick run to tie the game at 35-35. Keilan Torkornoo's layup gave Eastern Oregon a brief lead at 37-35, but Benedictine Mesa answered with a series of baskets from Payton, Robinson, and Zivak to reclaim momentum.

Eastern Oregon fought back behind Torkornoo and James Bodily, who hit a big three to put the Mountaineers ahead 53-50. The Redhawks responded with back-to-back triples from Blackwell and steady free-throw shooting from Payton and Howard to regain control. Despite late baskets from Hammack and Bodily, Benedictine Mesa closed the game at the line, securing the 74-68 victory.