For the fourth time this season, the MHCC men’s basketball team scored 100 points in their win Wednesday against Portland Community College, 100-66.

Gregg Barlow continued to contribute with 18 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists, Tyler Otis helped to control the Saints’ possessions with nine rebounds and three blocked shots, and Jamal Cooke assisted eight times.

The Saints were on fire scoring on almost every run in the first half and Nate Perry got the crowd roaring with his breakaway dunk with 20 seconds left to go in the first quarter.

The men were up 43 points at halftime, giving some of the sophomore players more time to rest. “It’s been a long season and it was nice that they (sophomores) got to rest a bit before we finish this last push through the tournament,” said head coach Rob Nielson.

Mt. Hood (9-1 and 20-2) is ranked second in the recent Feb. 3 NWAACC Coaches’ Poll. They are ranked behind Chemeketa (10-0 and 19-5) who are only one win ahead of them in the Southern Region. Mt. Hood’s final regular season game will be against Chemeketa and according to Nielson, it could be a preview for the championship game this year.

The Saints’ fans are already getting pumped-up for the postseason “They’re showing teamwork and great defense on the court. They’ll give any team a run for their money,” said Kurtis Hood.

Tomorrow, the Saints will be playing a hungry SWOCC, who will be fighting for a fourth-place spot in the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how the Saints respond because their last meeting went into overtime. This time they’ll be playing on SWOCC’s turf.

“It’s a loud, hostile environment (SWOCC’s home court). It’s fun to play though and I think the guys will respond,” said Nielson.