Box Score
LA GRANDE, Ore. – Demetrius Perkins scored eight of his game-high 22 points in a crucial second half run, as The College of Idaho pulled into a first-place tie in the Cascade Conference with a 75-67 victory at Eastern Oregon.
The win for the No. 23 Coyotes (14-5, 5-2 CCC) improved the club to 3-2 on the road in league play and drew the team into a tie with Southern Oregon atop the league standings - a half-game clear of Northwest and Northwest Christian.
C of I broke a 33-33 halftime tie with a seven-point surge to open the second half – as Ben Van Lith canned a trey and Perkins connected on four free throws to grab a 40-33 edge. The host Mountaineers (11-6, 2-5) answered, getting a long three from Derek Maloney and a pair of Trevor Phillips jumpers, part of a 13-4 run to give EOU a 46-44 lead.
Eastern held their final lead at 49-47, when Perkins took over. The junior gave the Yotes the lead with a driving lay-up, adding a block on the other end of the floor and canning a trey on C of I's next possession to extend the lead to 54-49. Another Perkins triple pushed the margin to 61-52, with a Josh Wilson basket giving the Coyotes their largest lead of the night at 65-53. The visitor closed out the win by connecting on 16-of-21 second half free throws.
Early on, it was all EOU, as the Mounties opened the contest on a 10-2 run – including three's from Tony Eackles and Kevin Attilla. C of I turned the tide quickly, as Sydney Donaldson scored 10 points in an 18-3 run to give the Yotes a 20-13 lead.
Van Lith scored 19 points and added seven rebounds in the victory for the Yotes, with Donaldson scoring 14 and Wilson 10.
Phillips led the Mountaineers with 14 points and nine rebounds, with Eackles scoring 12. Eastern had a 43-35 rebound edge, but committed 17 turnovers in the loss.
The Coyotes return to action next weekend, hosting Corban and No. 25 Northwest Christian.
