COSTA MESA, Calif. –
Aziz Leeks had 20 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, while
Justin Saunders hit six of College of Idaho's season-high 16 made 3-pointers, as the Yotes blew out Trinity International, 97-80, in a NAIA Division II Top-10 match-up at The Pit.
The No. 7 ranked Coyotes (5-3) won their fourth in a row, using a 16-2 first half run to erase a 29-26 TIU lead. C of I dominated the glass, using a 50-19 rebound margin and outscoring the No. 8 ranked Trojans (6-2) 25-5 on second-chance points.
The Illinois based Trojans got a pair of Nate Schmidt triples in a 9-0 first half run to build their biggest lead of the night at 23-17 – but the C of I offense caught fire – hitting 10 of their next 13 shots to take command. Saunders started the run with a trey – one of three he hit in the 25-8 run – while
Keun Palu-Thompson added eight points and
Gibson Berryhill had a pair of lay-ups, as the Yotes took a 42-31 lead with six minutes left.
Roosevelt Adams added two late 3s to give C of I a 56-43 lead at the half.
An O'Shae Williams steal and dunk pulled TIU within 68-55 with 14 minutes left in the game – but a
Talon Pinckney steal and dish for a Leeks dunk started a string of 10-straight C of I points. Leeks converted on the block and both Adams and Berryhill dropped treys to extend the Coyote lead to 78-55 – with the margin never falling below 16 points the rest of the way.
Leeks dominated the post, making 9-of-13 field goals and adding a pair of blocked shots, with his 16 rebounds equaling the high-mark in the Cascade Conference this season. Saunders had a career-high 20 points, making 6-of-9 3-pointers; Palu-Thompson had 11 points and 10 boards; Berryhill scored a season-high 11; with Pinckney scoring 10 points, with six assists, five rebounds and four steals.
Tyrone Carey led TIU with 24 points, with Williams scoring 16 and Greg Carlyle adding 11.
C of I closes out the weekend tomorrow night, meeting host Vanguard at 6 p.m. (PT)
