ARCATA, Calif. – Following a weekend road trip to Seattle, Humboldt State men's basketball returns to Lumberjack Arena and begins a five-game homestand with a game against non-conference Oregon Tech Tuesday, Nov. 15. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
The Lumberjacks (1-1) came away with a split at the Sodexo Tip-Off Challenge. Host Seattle Pacific defeated HSU 102-90 Friday and the North Coast team topped Simon Fraser Saturday afternoon 87-62.
 
"Playing Seattle Pacific was a tough challenge because they have a great program and a storied history," said Head Coach Steve Kinder. "They have a new coach who was the assistant coach for years, and their guys were big, strong, smart, disciplined and executed their game plan perfectly against us. We found ourselves taking ill-advised shots and turning the ball over more than we are comfortable with. To our credit we showed a lot of poise and composure and came back late in the game. Friday night's game was an eye-opener, and it motivated us going into Saturday's game. We played well against Simon Fraser, and that showed a lot of toughness and character on our part."
 
Tyras Rattler Jr. averaged 12.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game during the team's Seattle trip. Rattler scored 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting and grabbed nine boards in the Jacks' season-opening loss to Seattle Pacific. The sophomore from Oakland, Calif., was HSU's lone representative on the Sodexo Tip-Off Challenge All-Tournament Team.
 
Tuesday's game will feature the first meeting between the Jacks and Owls since the 1998-99 season. The all-time series is knotted at 45-45, and the Green and Gold won the last game 74-58.
 
"They are a very good program," said Kinder. "They are coming off a recent National Championship in 2012 and still have some players left over from that team."
 
Oregon Tech enters the matchup with a 2-2 overall record after coming off an 89-82 win over Southern Oregon. Brandon Halter is the Owls' top scoring threat with 19.3 points per game. Halter is a threat from outside the arc and is hitting 51.4 percent of his shots from 3-point range. As a team, Oregon Tech has been successful from outside the arc averaging 7.8 treys per game.