Saints men lose emotional game to Chemeketa

The Saints men set high goals this basketball season, with hopes of reaching the NWAC’s final four. Now, it appears they might not even make the playoffs.

Wednesday night, Mt. Hood fell to the Chemeketa Storm, 84-78. The loss dropped the Saints to 4-6 in division play and 10-10 overall. They now sit in seventh place in the South Division, one game back of fourth place, with six games remaining in the season.

The Wednesday game was key for the Saints. Had they won, they would be tied for third place with Chemeketa, Southwestern Oregon, Clark, and Portland – and would trail second-place Clackamas by only half a game. But that’s not how the game went.

The Saints got off to a great start, as they led 25-17 midway through the first half. Mt. Hood was hitting most of its shots and it looked like a game they might be able to run away with.

Then things began to turn, and the Storm outscored Mt. Hood by 10 points in the final eight minutes of the half to grab a 39-37 lead going into the locker rooms.

In the first six minutes of the second half, the Saints kept it close, trailing by no more than six points. But Chemeketa continued to play strong, and were hitting outside shots consistently. After another six minutes, Mt. Hood trailed by 15 points, 71-56.

The Saints tried to turn it on with just eight minutes remaining. They looked to their long-ball game but couldn’t find their shot. With just four-and-a-half minutes left, the Storm led 77-61.

That’s when the Saints appeared to find their rhythm, but it was too little, too late. Saints guard Elijah Fuller (who led Mt. Hood with 21 points) hit a three, then a mid-range fadeaway to pull the game to within nine with two minutes left. And with 45 seconds remaining, the Saints came up with a big steal and hit a layup to pull within five, at 81-76. But after that, the Storm hit their free-throws and walked away with the win.

It was clear by the defeated look on Mt. Hood players’ faces that they knew how important this game was. It almost felt like déjà vu to a week ago when they fell to Clark College in a tough 71-69 contest. The games themselves were played much differently but the importance of the games and the disappointment after were eerily similar.

Wednesday’s loss followed a victory on Saturday over Lane College, 80-77. It was big win in keeping their postseason hopes alive.

Mt. Hood isn’t completely out of the playoff picture, but will need all the dominoes to fall in its favor. The Saints play first-place Umpqua at 4 p.m. Saturday in Roseburg, in a must-win game. They come back home on Feb. 15 against Clackamas, now a game-and-a-half ahead of them. After that comes a game against last-place Lane and one against Linn-Benton, tied with the Saints for seventh place.

To wrap their season, the Saints play PCC and Southwestern Oregon, who both currently hold a one game lead on them. It obviously won’t be easy, but if they go on a late winning streak, they could still find themselves in the NWAC championship tournament.

Just a reminder: Tom Brady led the Patriots from down 28-3 to win the Super Bowl.