Box Score
NAMPA, Idaho – Sydney Donaldson scored all nine of his points in a decisive 20-5 second half run, as The College of Idaho completed a their first sweep of rival Northwest Nazarene since 1996, defeating the Crusaders, 79-62, inside the Johnson Sports Center.
The win helped the Yotes (10-4), who played the game as an exhibition, keep hold of the United Heritage Insurance Mayors' Cup, while winning for the first time against the Crusaders on their home court in 17 years.
The Crusaders (2-7), who never led in the game, cut C of I's lead to 45-44 on one of six Grayson Moore three-pointers. But the Yotes methodically put the game out of reach, as Joe Vaz canned three free throws, Demetrius Perkins drained an 18-foot jumper, Donaldson buried a pair of three-pointers and put back a missed lay-up, Zach Peterson nailed a jumper and had a fast-break dunk, and Josh Wilson had a nifty floater that ballooned the lead to 65-49 with eight minutes to play.
C of I came out of the gates strong, holding NNU to just one made field goal over the first eight minutes. Taylor Pruett had six early points and Demetrius Perkins had a fast-break dunk, as the Yotes built a 12-2 lead. The Crusaders used the three-point shot to get back into the game, as a Moore trey capped an 11-2 run that got the hosts even at 22-22. A Peterson three-point play and a Wilson triple helped the Yotes extend the margin to eight, settling for a 40-34 lead at halftime.
Perkins led five C of I scorers in double-figures with 16 points and six rebounds, with Pruett adding 15 points, and Wilson scoring 13 points with five assists. Ben Van Lith had 11 points and five rebounds, with Peterson coming off the bench to score 10. The Yotes hit 12-of-28 three-point shots and committed just seven turnovers in the victory.
Moore led NNU with 22 points and nine rebounds, with Kevin Rima scoring 13. The Crusaders were just 1-of-4 from the foul line, while the hosts had 15 turnovers.
The Coyotes return to action next weekend, hosting Oregon Tech on Friday and second-ranked Southern Oregon on Saturday.
