2020-21 Men's Basketball Notebook (Week 3-B)

COMING UP: at Eastern Washington, Friday, 2:05 p.m.

COMPLETE MEDIA GAME NOTES

BROADCAST INFORMATION: Fans will be able to follow Coyote Basketball this season online – with all home games carried live on C of I's new Yotes Digital Network. The broadcasts will feature an enhanced look and feel of a traditional television broadcast, with features, graphics, commercials and insight on the Yotes. Mike Safford and Sven Alskog will have the play-by-play beginning 15 minutes prior to tip-off for all home games. Friday afternoon's game at Eastern Washington will be carried live on Pluto TV (Channel 1053 or online at https://bigskyconf.com/watchbigsky, with Larry Weir on the call. The game will also be simulcast on 700 KXLX-AM and 105.3 KXLX-FM in the Spokane market, with the online stream available
 
NO FANS TO START THE SEASON: The J.A. Albertson Activities Center is arguably one of the toughest venues in all of NAIA Basketball, as the Coyotes have posted a staggering 110-12 overall record on their home floor since the start of the 2013-14 season – including an 18-1 record at home last season – averaging over 1,450 fans per game, tops among all small college teams in the Northwest. Since the Activities Center opened in 1991, the Yotes have recorded a 326-95 all-time record – with the mark ballooning to 442-104 when accounting the previous decade at O'Connor Fieldhouse. The feeling will not be the same in 2020-21, as due to precautions surrounding COVID-19, fans will be prohibited from the Activities Center until further notice.

SCHEDULE CHANGES CONTINUE: The issues with the COVID-19 pandemic continue to play tricks on the Coyote schedule, with games scheduled and others hastily scheduled on tight timelines. C of I saw their Thursday and Friday games with Montana Western postponed due to virus issues in the Bulldog program, while games next Tuesday and Wednesday at William Jessup have been canceled as the Warriors program has paused for the next three weeks. C of I has added a game next Thursday at Division I Seattle University, with the team exploring other potential games over the next 10 days.
 
COYOTES TO SET RECORD FOR MOST D-I GAMES: Friday's game at Eastern Washington will mark just the second time in program history that the Yotes will play three NCAA Division I teams in one season – and will break the mark a week from today at Seattle University. During the 2003-04 season, the Yotes played games at Nevada (losing 64-45), at Boise State (losing 91-49) and at Weber State (losing 79-49).
 
AGAINST DIVISION I TEAMS: From 2004-20, the Yotes played 14 exhibition games against Division I squads, posting a 1-13 record – including an 87-66 win over Boise State in 2004. Outside of the 14 exhibition games, C of I has played 151 counting games against current NCAA Division I teams, posting an all-time record of 55-96 against the current D-I members Last Friday's loss at Boise State marked C of I's first counting game against a Division I opponent since 2004 (69-54 loss at Weber State).
 
THE LAST TWO D-I WINS: C of I's first-ever exhibition game was arguably their biggest, as the Yotes dominated a Boise State team that featured future professional players in Coby Karl, Jermaine Blackburn and Jason Ellis, winning 87-66 in the 2004-05 season opener. Dan McFaul led the Coyotes with 24 points, as the NAIA squad led by as many as 37 points in the second half against a Broncos team that was coming off a quarterfinal appearance in the NIT. C of I's most recent counting victory against a Division I opponent was during the 2002-03 season, defeating Idaho State in the Bengals season opener, 72-68 – which was played at a neutral site at American Falls High. Eric Hare led the Yotes with 15 points, with C of I making 7-of-8 free throws in the final two minutes to complete the stunner. The 2002-03 team won the CCC Tournament title and advanced to the second-round of the NAIA Championships, while the 2004-05 squad reached the CCC finals and qualified for the NAIA Championships.
 
REKINDLING A RIVALRY WITH EASTERN WASHINGTON: For the first time since the 1960-61 season, the Yotes will tangle with Eastern Washington on the hardwood, traveling to Cheney for the Friday afternoon match-up. The two teams were NAIA rivals in the 1950s, playing 8-of-the-9 games in the series from 1950-60 – including an 81-67 C of I win on EWU's home court in 1954, as Elgin Baylor and R.C. Owens combined for 52 points and 42 rebounds. The first meeting was during the 1924-25 season, with Eastern winning 39-21, with the Yotes last win coming in 1960, an 81-80 overtime victory on a Ted Talbot basket in Kirkpatrick Gym. C of I holds the all-time series lead, 5-4.
 
MEET THE EAGLES: The Yotes will meet their second-straight conference champion, as Eastern is the defending Big Sky Conference regular-season champions and finished the season with a 23-8 record before the BSC Tournament in Boise was canceled. The Eagles (0-3) were picked to win the conference crown in 2020-21, but have played an extremely difficult preseason – dropping road games at Washington State (71-68), Arizona (70-67) and Oregon (69-52), outscoring the three teams in the first half, but struggling offensively in the second half of all three contests. BSC Preseason Player of the Year, guard Jacob Davison (11.0 ppg, 3.3 apg, 2.7 rpg) and forward Kim Aiken Jr. (6.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg) had big 2019-20 season, with combo-guard Tyler Robertson (12.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg) and brothers Jacob Groves (10.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg) and Tanner Groves (11.3 ppg, 9.0 rpg) leading the squad in scoring this season. EWU is averaging 62 points per game, making 38-percent of their field goals and 28-percent of their 3-point attempts.
 
AGAINST THE BIG SKY: C of I has played against seven of the 11 members of the Big Sky Conference, posting an all-time record of 25-63 against the Division I league – though many of the games came when teams were either Division II or NAIA schools. The Yotes have met Idaho State 63 times, recording a 15-48 record, while going a perfect 3-0 against Sacramento State and 2-3 vs. Weber State. C of I is 0-2 against both Montana and Montana State; are 0-4 against Idaho; with the team yet to compete against Portland State, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado and Southern Utah.
 
STREAKS ALIVE: Though the Coyotes 26-game win streak was snapped at Boise State on Dec. 4, three streaks still continue for C of I. The Coyotes hold a 14-game home win streak (dating back to a November 2019 loss to Lewis-Clark State), a 20-game CCC win streak (dating back to a February 2019 road loss at Oregon Tech) and a 26-game win streak against NAIA competition (dating back to a November 2019 loss at The Masters).
 
GREAT EFFORT AT UTAH STATE: For the first 25 minutes of Tuesday's meeting at Utah State, the Coyotes played the defending Mountain West Conference Tournament champs to a stalemate. A 12-0 run to open the second half gave C of I a 45-44 lead at the under 16-minute time out – but USU found another gear – with the 30-5 spurt putting the game away. The Coyotes forced 13 Aggies turnovers in the loss and played even on the glass in the first half, but USU had a 26-8 edge in free throws made and held the visitors to 31-percent shooting in the second half.
 
TIME LEADS THE WAY IN LOGAN: For the second-straight game, Ricardo Time led the Yotes in scoring, posting 16 points and four rebounds at Utah State. The senior connected on three 3-point field goals – the 18th time in his career he has made 3-or-more 3's in a game – while leading the team with three steals. Time is averaging 14 points and 4.3 rebounds per game in 2020-21.
 
GALLOWAY CONTINUES TORRID START: Through three games, Jalen Galloway has been the go-to player for the Yotes – the only C of I player to post a double-digit score line in all three games. The junior made 5-of-11 field goals, including three triples, scoring 13 points with two boards and two assists. For the season, Galloway leads the team with a 56-percent shooting clip, while making 9-of-15 3-point attempts.
 
ELZIE HAS BIG HALF: After two quiet offensive games to start the season, point-guard Charles Elzie stepped up at Utah State, scoring 12 first half points in the loss. The sophomore made 5-of-9 field goals, while tying for the team lead with three assists. It was his sixth career double-figures scoring game.
 
POSTS LIMIT ALL-AMERICAN: It was a tall task for Coyote big-men Connor Desaulniers and Paul Wilson, matching up against 7-foot All-America center Neemias Queta, one of five Aggie players 6-foot-10 or taller. The duo limited the post to just eight points – six coming on transition baskets off turnovers and just two points in half court sets. Wilson had a career-high five points and three rebounds, recording two blocked shots for the third-straight game. Desaulniers had two points and two rebounds – only taking one shot on the evening.
 
FRESHMEN SEE INCREASED PLAYING TIME: Three different freshmen saw 15-or-more minutes of action on Tuesday, as C of I suited just 12 players due to various ailments. Redshirt frosh Jake O'Neil earned a start at the small forward spot, leading the team with five rebounds in 21 minutes of action. Fellow forward Tyler Robinett played 18 minutes, canning a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws, finishing with a career-high eight points and a rebound, while guard Johnny Radford played 16 minutes, recording eight points, two steals and an assist.
 
HITTING THE 3-BALL: Long range shooting was key at Utah State, as the Coyotes canned a season-high 12 3-pointers in the loss. C of I started the game hot from outside the arc, making 10 of their first 20 attempts. Last season, the Yotes recorded double-digit 3-point makes in 15 different games, while making 9-or-more 3's in their final 10 games of the 2019-20 season.
 
C OF I AMONG THE NAIA'S BEST AT THE LINE: Free throw shooting numbers have been slanted this season, as C of I opponents have outscored the Yotes 72-31 at the stripe and taken 59 more free throws. However, when the Coyotes have gotten to the line, they are among the top foul shooting teams in the NAIA – converting 31-of-38 free throws (.816 percent), the No. 5 mark in the association. Six different players are perfect from the line this season, with post Connor Desaulniers leading the team with nine free throw attempts.
 
RECORD BOOK: Three Yotes rank among the Top-50 in C of I's career record book, as Connor Desaulniers is No. 9 in blocked shots (80) and No. 28 in rebounds (475); Ricardo Time is No. 39 in 3-pointers made (83) and No. 46 in 3-point attempts (187); with Ivory Miles-Williams No. 34 in games played (94).
 
ELSEWHERE IN THE CCC: The conference dropped to nine basketball schools for the 2020-21 season, as Southern Oregon announced it was opting out from competition for the year due to COVID-19. Lewis-Clark State made their season debut at home, recording lopsided victories on Saturday and Sunday over Yellowstone Christian, behind the play of guard Damek Mitchel – who was honored as CCC Player of the Week. Northwest, the only other CCC team competing, dropped an 88-48 decision at Portland State on Tuesday and will meet Seattle U on Saturday. The remaining six CCC teams (Warner Pacific, Multnomah, Eastern Oregon, Corban, Bushnell, Oregon Tech) are still unable to have contact practices due to an Oregon state mandate.
 
AROUND THE NAIA: A total of 172 of the 231 men's basketball playing schools in the NAIA have begun their 2020-21 season, with some teams already completing 13 games. A total of 27 teams are currently undefeated, including No. 2 Mid America Christian (4-0) and No. 3 Indiana Wesleyan (12-0), while top-ranked Georgetown lost for the first time, falling at No. 15 Cumberlands (Ky.). IWU earned a lopsided 109-44 win over Taylor (Ind.), behind 16 points from NAIA Player of the Week, Kyle Mangas, while Marian (Ind.) knocked Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) from the unbeaten ranks with a 77-61 win.
 
A NEW LOOK NAIA: The new season also marks the first time since 1991 that the NAIA will operate with just one division in basketball – combining the Division I and Division II leagues. The association will operate with an eight scholarship maximum (three less than the Division I used previously, but two more than the Division II allowed). The change will also affect the NAIA Championships, as the field will grow from 32 teams to 64, starting with 16 4-team Opening Round sites, with each of the 16 winners earning a trip to the Final Site in Kansas City. The J.A. Albertson Activities Center has been certified as a potential venue for the NAIA Opening Round, with the decision made by the national office in February.
 
PRESEASON POLLS: Last season, the Coyotes became the first-ever team in CCC history to complete a perfect league schedule – going 20-0 – winning their fourth conference title in the last seven years. However, the plaudits did not give C of I the nod in the 2020-21 Preseason Coaches' Poll, as CCC newcomer, Lewis-Clark State – the 2020 Frontier Conference champs, earned the honor. LC State earned 139 voter points, just five points ahead of C of I, with Oregon Tech, Southern Oregon and Eastern Oregon rounding out the Top-5. Both Idaho schools found themselves in the Top-10 of the Preseason NAIA Top-25 – with LCSC at No. 5 and the Yotes at No. 8 – the 29th-straight week C of I has been ranked in the national poll.
 
3-POINT STREAK: Since college basketball adopted the 3-point line at the start of the 1986-87 season, the Coyotes have made a 3-pointer in every game but one – a loss to Idaho State during the U.S. Bank Tip-Off Tournament at Boise State on Dec. 2, 1988. Since then, C of I has run a string of games with a trey to 1,041 – one of five programs (UNLV – 1,108, CCC rival, Duke – 1,096, Corban – 1,090, Arkansas – 1,050 and Western Kentucky – 1,047) which have made a 3-pointer in over 1,040-or-more straight games.
 
UNDER 60 POINTS / OVER 95 POINTS: C of I currently has a 48-game win streak in games where opponents fail to reach 60 points – and a dominating 205-12 mark in such games over the last 40 years. During the same stretch, the Coyotes are 58-2 when opponents fail to score 50. In addition, the Yotes have won 47 of their last 48 contests (dating back to 2006) when scoring 95 points per game.