Eastern Oregon University's Phillip Malatare (0) goes for a basket during the second half of the match against Montana Western University at Quinn Coliseum, La Grande, on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021. Eastern walked away with a narrow 67-61 victory in its home opener.  

LA GRANDE — The Eastern Oregon University men’s basketball team gave the top team in the Cascade Collegiate Conference a run for its money, but ultimately experienced a close loss. The Mountaineers fell 65-58 to Oregon Tech at Quinn Coliseum on Friday, Jan. 21, dropping to 11-9 overall and 5-7 in conference play. The Owls improved to a conference-leading 12-0 record and 15-5 overall.

Oregon Tech led throughout the entirety of the game, but Eastern never fell out of reach. Phillip Malatare led the Mountaineers with a strong effort, scoring a game-high 20 points. Preston Chandler put together a strong performance, scoring eight points and leading the team with seven rebounds.

Eastern struggled shooting throughout the game, as Oregon Tech outshot the Mountaineers by a wide margin early on. In the first half, Eastern shot 37.1% from the field, while Oregon Tech was scorching at 55.6%.

In the second half Eastern shot 37.9% from the field, but picked up the defense and held Oregon Tech to 30.4%. The Mountaineers came within two points midway through the second half, but Oregon Tech ultimately pulled away late to take the victory.

A big key for the Owls was 48 points from bench players in a well-rounded effort. Three Oregon Tech players scored in double figures.

While the Mountaineers played admirably against top competitors, the loss is a tough blow to start off a weekend back-to-back. Eastern will be looking to bounce back on Jan. 22 in a matchup against rival Southern Oregon — tip-off at Quinn Coliseum is slated for 5 p.m.