CALDWELL, Idaho –
Nate Bruneel scored a game-high 16 points and drained four of College of Idaho's 14 3-point field goals, as the Yotes won the title of the Domino's Classic with a 76-60 victory over Embry-Riddle inside the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
Facing a zone defense throughout, the Yotes (9-0) made 58-percent of their 3-point attempts – including a stellar 7-of-11 clip in the first half – to cruise to the victory over the Eagles.
C of I broke the game open midway through the first half – using a 9-0 run over a three minute period to build a 28-13 lead. Following two
Connor Desaulniers free throws,
Talon Pinckney stole the inbounds pass and scored and after an ERAU (3-4) miss, Bruneel drained a 3-pointer to cap the rally.
The Eagles trailed by as many as 20 early in the second half, but cut the margin to 51-37 after three Conner Verdugo free throws with 14 minutes remaining. C of I answered with a long
Keun Palu-Thompson triple and
Jalen Galloway scored off an offensive rebound and the Coyotes eased to the victory.
Bruneel finished 4-of-6 from distance and added three rebounds and three assists. Pinckney had 12 points and three seasons, with Palu-Thompson, Desaulniers,
Matt Meyers and
Gibson Berryhill all scoring nine. Galloway recorded a career-high 10 rebounds, as C of I held a 40-28 edge on the glass.
Nick Johnson led ERAU with 13 points and Gilbert Ibarra scored 10. The Eagles were limited to 38-percent shooting on the night.
C of I returns to action on Tuesday, traveling to Nampa to meet Northwest Nazarene in the United Heritage Insurance Mayors Cup Series.
In the consolation game, Montana Tech got 28 points from Blake Dittman and 20 from Nick Fitts in a 97-81 win over Multnomah.
