Bench Lifts Hawks to Upset Win Over Peninsula 77-73

PASCO, Wash. – The Columbia Basin Hawks completed the biggest upset of the tournament thus far, defeating No. 1 seed Peninsula 77-73 in the Sweet 16 of the NWAC Men's Basketball Championship, presented by Sun Pacific Energy, on Saturday at Columbia Basin College.

The #4 seed Hawks (20-6, 10-6 East) got 35 points from their bench, led by Teagen Hoard and Ta'Veus Randle. Hoard hit back-to-back shots late to tie the game with 1:47 after a made three pointer. After Peninsula reclaimed the lead, Randle knocked down a pair of free throws to tie the score before hitting the eventual game-winning basket with a beautiful over-under lay-in with 29 seconds remaining.

The Pirates (25-3, 12-2 North) got a buzzer beating three by Mike Medlock Jr. to end the first half ahead 41-39. They then used that momentum and started the half hot with seven-straight points to jump ahead 48-39, looking like they could pull away. The Hawks rallied quickly, however, scoring 10-straight points to take a 49-48 lead.

Hoard paced the Hawks with 14 points on 6-for-8 shooting, doing so in just 19 minutes on the floor. Randle had 13 points with two steals and two assists. Latrell Barker finished with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Medlock led Peninsula with 17 points, playing all 40 minutes. Roosevelt Williams Jr., the North Region MVP, had 14 points and seven rebounds. Aiden Olmstead had 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for the Pirates.

The Hawks move onto the Elite 8 where they will face #3-seed Southwestern Oregon on Sunday at 2 p.m.

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