Big Bend men shocked by lowly Blue Mountain

Lady Vikings split home series with Chukars, Timberwolves

MOSES LAKE - On paper, Saturday's NWAACC East Region men's basketball game between Big Bend and Blue Mountain had the makings of a one-sided affair.

After all, fifth-ranked Big Bend was coming off its eighth win in nine league games a night earlier, while Blue Mountain had struggled to a 1-9 mark and was trying to recover from a 43-point pasting at Spokane on Friday.

But none of that mattered as the Timberwolves stunned the Vikings 95-91 at DeVries Activity Center, leaving Big Bend (19-4 overall, 8-2 league) two games behind first-place Spokane and only 1 1/2 games ahead of third-place Yakima Valley.

Blue Mountain (5-17, 2-9) shot a whopping 55 percent (34 of 62) and hit 21 free throws to spring the upset. The Timberwolves also took advantage of 19 Vikings turnovers and poor free-throw shooting - Big Bend was only 12 of 22 (55 percent) from the stripe.

The game was close throughout, with neither side mustering more than a seven-point lead at any time. Blue Mountain got a strong game from its bench, outscoring Big Bend's 30-20, and distributed the ball well by compiling 26 assists on their 34 field goals.

Sophomore forward Brett Vriesman tied for the game high with 21 points for the Vikings, but missed six of nine free-throw chances. He added 12 rebounds before fouling out.

Daley Landon connected on five 3-pointers and had 19 points for Big Bend, while Cameron Mero hit three triples and also scored 19. Will Winn and Hugh Brown each scored 10 points, and James York dished out 10 assists, though the Viking point guard was limited to five points, well below his season average.

Blue Mountain's Chris James had 21 points and 12 rebounds. Teammates Curvonte McGown (17 points), Jamar Ransome (16 points), Robert Turner (14 points) and Trey Bowie (11 points, seven assists) also had key contributions.

Earlier on Saturday, the Big Bend women capitalized on a huge rebounding edge to blow out the Timberwolves 76-50. The Lady Vikings improved to 14-9, 4-6, and are 1 1/2 games behind Walla Walla for the fourth and final playoff spot.

Big Bend had a 70-38 advantage on the boards and converted that into 23 second-chance points. The Vikings led 39-27 at halftime and started the second half with a frenzy, going on a 25-7 run to take their biggest lead of the game at 64-34.

Warden High School product Dana Bates led Big Bend with 20 points and 14 rebounds, hitting 8 of her 13 shots from the field. Natalie Lindley buried three 3-pointers en route to 13 points, five boards and five assists. Misty Ostlie had 11 points, five boards and four steals, while Heather Burke added 10 points and seven boards.

Jequala Warren paced the Timberwolves (10-17, 1-10) with 13 points and Emily Chandler added 11. Blue Mountain shot just 29 percent from the floor (19 of 66) and committed 23 turnovers.

On Friday, Big Bend hosted Treasure Valley, with the women opening the doubleheader with a 71-66 defeat to the Chukars (7-17, 4-7).

Momentum shifted throughout the game, as there were eight ties and six lead changes. The Vikings had a 37-35 edge at the break, but couldn't hang on.

Treasure Valley shot and rebounded much better than Blue Mountain did - the Chukars hit 49 percent from the floor and grabbed a 39-35 edge on the glass. Big Bend was also hurt by a lack of ball security, turning it over 26 times.

Still, the Vikings stayed close thanks to the play of Bates and sophomore co-captain Kim Bluff. Bates finished with 16 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Bluff scored a game-high 21 points, shooting 5 of 10 from the floor and 9 of 10 from the foul line.

Bluff was the only Viking who shot well from the free-throw line, however, as the rest of the team was 5 of 15.

Ashlie McFarland had 20 points to lead Treasure Valley. Kyle Roberts had 12 points and six rebounds, Kelly Howard had 11 points and nine assists, and Elizabeth Jablonski added 10 points and eight boards.

In the nightcap, the Viking men overcame a poor shooting performance and 20 turnovers to win 82-76.

Big Bend hit only 28 of 75 shots from the floor (37 percent), but a 57-28 lead in the rebounding department helped them to 23 second-chance points. The Vikings also forced 24 turnovers of their own, including 12 steals.

The game featured 27 lead changes and nine ties, and the visiting Chukars trailed by only one point at half by shooting 61 percent (17 of 28).

However, Landon proved a big difference-maker in the end, leading the Vikings with 24 points on four 3-pointers. Vriesman had 13 points and 15 rebounds, Mero scored 13 points, and Winn added 12 points, seven boards and five assists.

Treasure Valley forward Shane Miller led all scorers with 25 points, while teammates Josh Smith and Jason Mumm scored 21 and 13, respectively.

Big Bend returns to the road on Wednesday, playing Columbia Basin College at 6 p.m. The Vikings have four regular-season games remaining.