Box Score
NAMPA, Idaho – Jordan O'Byrne scored a team-high 19 points, including the go-ahead three-pointer in overtime, as The College of Idaho won their seventh in a row, knocked off nationally-ranked Montana Western, 81-76.
The win streak for the Coyotes (7-2) is their longest since the 2003-04 Cascade Conference championship season, when C of I recorded a pair of seven-game win streaks. The Yotes also improved to 5-2 this season against NCAA Division II or NAIA Division I teams.
The Bulldogs (6-3), ranked No. 8 in the NAIA Division I poll, rallied from an eight-point deficit in the final four minutes of regulation to force overtime – getting a pair of Kris Castro free throws early in the extra session to lead 74-72.
O'Byrne followed, canning a three, with Joe Vaz adding a pair of free throws to give C of I a 77-74 edge with two minutes remaining. A Sydney Donaldson steal ended Western's next possession, with a pair of Demetrius Perkins free throws sealing the Yotes win.
The Bulldogs controlled the first 10 minutes of the game, before O'Byrne hit a three and a running jumper in a 15-4 C of I run, giving the Yotes a 34-24 lead – as the Purple and Gold led 43-30 at the break.
Trailing 51-40, Western battled back, as Kurtis Parsons hit a pair of long-range jumpers in an 11-2 run to get within 53-51. After the Yotes built the lead back to 66-55, the Bulldogs made a final push, as a Jake Owsley runner capped a 9-0 run to give Western a 70-69 lead with 1:39 remaining. Perkins followed with a three for the Yotes to give C of I the lead, but a pair of Jordan Overstreet free throws with 13 seconds remaining forced overtime.
Perkins had 13 points and six rebounds in the win, with Vaz adding 12, Donaldson scoring 11, and Taylor Pruett adding 11 points and 10 rebounds. C of I won despite making just 7-of-28 three-point attempts.
Owsley had 22 points and 13 rebounds for Western, with Parsons and Kris Collins each scoring 14. The Bulldogs committed 20 turnovers in the loss.
C of I returns home on Tuesday night, hosting Lewis-Clark State at 7:30 p.m.
