PORTLAND, OR - The Eagles put on a gritty effort as the final playoff spot for the CCC tournament was on the line. Despite a slow start and large hole to climb out of, Northwest was able to complete the comeback and take home the victory, 84-81. 
 
The Lions jumped out to an early lead as Northwest had trouble finding the basket. The Eagles found themselves down by 21 in the first half. But, Northwest began to find their groove as shots started to land and they were able to fight their way back into the game. Multnomah held the lead by 12 going into halftime. 
 
Multnomah continued their momentum out of half as they kept finding the basket. The Eagles began to creep back in and found themselves within single digits of the Lions with nine minutes left to go. Northwest saw their first lead of the night with 3:35 left to play. As both teams felt the weight of tonight's game, the score went back and forth. In the last minute, it came down to a free throw battle. The Eagles were able to hang on and clinch the win with two free throws by Lewis Pope with seven seconds left. 
 
"So proud of this group," said Head Coach Rick Skeen. "One of our core covenants is toughness. We were down 25-4 and our guys just kept battling. They never quit and a bunch of guys contributed to a huge win. So excited for them and proud of them."
 
Northwest had five Eagles reach double digits in the victory. Lewis Pope led the charge with 18 points. He was followed by Luke Howard with 15, Nash Wobrock with 11, and Miciah Hagan and Manuel Zapater each with 10. 
 
With tonight's win, Northwest clinched the last playoff spot for the CCC playoffs. This will be the first playoff run under Head Coach Rick Skeen. 
 
The Eagles will finish the regular season at Warner Pacific tomorrow at 5 p.m.