KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Oregon Tech withstood two last-second game-tying field goal chances by Bethel University, as the Hustlin' Owls outlasted the Pilots, 85-83, in the final game of Day 1 of the Lithia Cascade vs. Crossroads Classic, presented by Cascade Hoops Talk.
 
Drew Lutz, who led all players with 41 points, missed a pair of free throws with five seconds left – but the Pilots (1-1) guard collected the rebound on the baseline. His 15-footer rimmed out, while a Nathan Aerts putback missing short, before Tech secured the rebound to close out the victory.
 
Jamison Guerra paced the Owls attack, scoring 23 points with eight rebounds – breaking a 79-79 tie with a pair of free throws inside the final minute – the first of 6-straight free throws from the junior. But Lutz answered with a mid-range jumper and a lay-up – setting the stage for the final sequence.
 
"Our game plan was to try and contain Drew Lutz," said Guerra. "We made the one stop we needed to get a win – that was a big win for us."
 
The Pilots used a 9-0 run in the first half, capped by a Jameir Jefferson lay-up, to take their largest lead of the night at 13-7. OIT answered with a 12-4 run, including a 3-point play from Blake Jensen and a 3-pointer from Jay Elmore, giving the Owls a 23-21 lead. Neither team had a lead greater than three points the rest of the half.
 
The two teams went back-and-forth in the second half, as an Osborn lay-up gave the Owls a 61-56 midway through the period, but Jefferson canned a triple to cap a 7-0 run by the Pilots to give the Indiana school their final lead at 63-61.
 
Tech matched the rally, using a 12-3 run, started by a Keegan Shivers put-back and ended with a corner 3-pointer from Yanni Fassilis, regaining the lead at 73-66 with five minutes to play.
 
Lutz continued his big night, connecting on a long triple to start a Pilots surge – with the senior tying the game at 75-75 following a 3-point play.
 
Jensen had 15 points and 10 rebounds, Shivers scoring 13 points with six boards, Erik Fraser scoring nine points with six boards, and Fassilis scoring eight. Tech won despite making 43-percent of their field goals and losing the rebound margin, 44-38.
 
Lutz finished 16-of-28 from the field and 8-of-12 from the line in the loss, with Nathan Aerts adding 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists. The Pilots made 34-of-68 field goal chances, but connected on just 3-of-18 shots from 3-point range.
 
It was the third-straight meeting between the teams decided by two points – with Tech earning their first-ever win over the Pilots.
 
In the early game, No. 2-ranked Grace made 54-percent of their field goals, getting 17 points from Gage Sefton and Jake Wadding in a 97-59 win over Bushnell. The Lancers (3-0) erased a 16-15 deficit in the first half with a 21-2 run – extending the lead to as many as 41 points.
 
Bethel and Bushnell meet in the consolation game at 3 p.m., with OIT and Grace meeting for the tourney title at 7:30 p.m.