Yotes Knock Off NNU to Retain Mayors' Cup
CALDWELL, Idaho – Joe Vaz flirted with a double-double as the College of Idaho knocked off crosstown rival, Northwest Nazarene, 67-57, this evening inside a stuffed-to-capacity J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
Vaz had 12 points on 3-of-6 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds and blocking three shots in just 15 minutes of play, helping the Yotes (5-0) win their 20th straight home-game.
The Crusaders, who played the game as an exhibition, were led by Mike Wright who had a game-high 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field, including two of NNU's three made three-pointers.
The Coyotes opened the contest on an 8-0 run, getting five of Sydney Donaldson's team-high 13 points in the first two minutes of the game. The Crusaders would battle back, cutting the C of I lead to 27-25 as Bouna N'Diaye split a pair of free-throws with 7:35 remaining in the first period.
"We came out and played with great poise to start the game in a tremendous environment," head coach Scott Garson said. "The crowd was really into the game and our team responded well, which comes from our experience and senior leadership."
C of I would push the lead back to 17-points just before the half as Jordan O'Byrne hit three straight triples in as many possessions, part of an 11-point first half.
The Crusaders came out of the locker room with a heavy mindset on defense, holding C of I without a field-goal made for the first 11 minutes of the second half. Despite the drought, NNU was unable to get the deficit under seven-points.
"We withstood a really good effort from NNU to start the second half," Garson added. "They came out and tried to make a run; once we settled down and went with the big lineup, we controlled the next portion of the game."
C of I was able to push their lead back to its halftime margin of 14 points as Marko Kovacevic drilled a three-pointer with 8:59 remaining in the game and the Coyotes never looked back.
"It's great to keep the Mayors' Cup trophy in Caldwell; it's been sitting in our locker room for over a year now, outside of the day we had it engraved," Garson said. "We are happy to keep it that way for at least the next 13 days."
Demetrius Perkins scored 12 points, including a slew of clutch free-throws down the stretch to preserve the Coyote lead. Kovacevic flirted with another double-double, notching nine-points and pulling in 11 rebounds on the night.
C of I won the battle of the boards, outrebounding NNU 49-40, including five more offensive rebounds than their Nampa rivals. The Coyotes led for 98.2-percent of the game and never trailed in the 197th meeting of the oldest rivals in the state of Idaho.
Scott Garson improved his career record to 33-6, including a perfect 20-0 record at home.
C of I will be back in action this weekend, traveling to Lewiston to compete at the Clearwater River Casino Invitational, meeting host Lewis-Clark State on Friday and Montana Tech on Saturday.