CALDWELL, Idaho –
Jake O'Neil scored eight of his 14 points in a decisive 16-6 second half run, as The College of Idaho moved into sole possession of first-place in the Cascade Conference with a 73-61 victory over Northwest University inside the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
The No. 9-ranked Coyotes (23-4, 17-2 CCC) tied a school-record with their 23rd-straight conference win and moved atop the CCC standings after Oregon Tech dropped an 82-80 home decision to Multnomah.
The visiting Eagles (10-14, 7-12) used the 3-pointer to grab a 29-22 lead and had a 47-46 edge with just over 16 minutes left in the contest following CaCoa Chatman's sixth triple of the evening.
After
Ricardo Time hit three free throws to give the hosts the league, O'Neil hit a runner in the lane and added 6-straight points – including a fast break bucket following a
Johnny Radford steal, to give the Yotes a 63-52 lead.
Time led C of I with 16 points, including a big 3-pointer in a 13-3 first half run that erased a NU 29-22 lead, with
Drew Wyman scoring 10 – starting the run with a monster alley-oop dunk.
Tyler Robinett posted eight points and eight rebounds, with
Ivory Miles-Williams scoring eight points with seven boards.
C of I had a 41-29 edge on the glass, while committing a season-low two turnovers – the fewest by a C of I team in at least 14 years.
Northwest, which played the game without head coach Jeff Drinkwine, got a game-high 20 points from Chatman, with Tanner Davis adding 12. The Eagles finished the game 9-of-20 from 3-point range.
The Yotes close out their regular-season home schedule tomorrow afternoon, with a 5 p.m. match-up vs. Evergreen. Prior to the game, C of I will honor their four senior student-athletes – Time, Miles-Williams,
Derek Wadsworth and
Nathan Burman.
