EUGENE, Ore. – The Northwest Christian University men’s basketball team pulled off the unthinkable on Sunday afternoon, taking down NAIA Division II No. 1 ranked College of Idaho, 84-80.
Shooting 56% from the field and shooting 15-for-26 from three-point range, NCU went well beyond the CCC-leading 65.8 points per game normally allowed by the Yotes. Fueling the win was senior Austin Tyner (pictured) who scored a career-high 36 points, shooting 7-for-9 from three-point range.
The Beacons held College of Idaho to 44% shooting inside and outside the three-point line as the teams combined for 27 three-pointers. The Yotes also out-rebounded the Beacons, 35-24. Both teams committed an uncharacteristic 19 turnovers, but for the ninth time this season NCU finished the game with double-digit steals, collecting 11.
The Beacons never trailed in the contest, jumping out to a 6-0 lead on a pair of three-pointers from Tyrus Hosley in the first two minutes. Holding a nine-point lead with six and half minutes to play in the first half, the Beacons continued to put their foot on the throttle, using a 9-2 run to build a 40-24 lead with four minutes on the clock.
Head Coach Eddie Alexander said, “One of the biggest things we emphasized was coming out aggressive. We were playing a team that is quite honestly more athletic, bigger, and deeper than we are, so we talked about being aggressive and stay within our game plan. I told the guys not to worry whether shots were falling or not, and to just throw caution to the wind and be as aggressive as we can, offensively and defensively.”
The C of I pulled within seven points on a pair of free-throws from Derek Wadsworth with just under a minute to play but two late three-pointers from Tyner gave NCU a 49-38 advantage at the intermission.
To the surprise of no one, the defending CCC champions were not going to go quietly, slowly chipping away at the NCU lead throughout the second half. NCU had built their advantage back to twelve, 63-51 with 13 minutes to play. Over the next five minutes, the Yotes got hot, going on a 8-0 run while forcing three Beacon turnovers to climb within four points.
Later, an Austin Tyner three-point play gave the Beacons a 76-68 edge that quickly went away. With 1:23 to play, Gibson Berryhill brought College of Idaho within one point for the first time in the game, hitting a three-pointer.
Hosley answered with a three and after trading free-throws, clung to a four-point lead, 81-77 with 13 seconds to play. Berryhill again hit a triple to make it a one point game, but the Beacons iced the game hitting 3-of-4 free-throws in the final five seconds to escape with a upset victory.
“We knew if we got this game into the 80’s, we would have a chance to win,” said Alexander. “College of Idaho is comfortable scoring in the 70’s to win a game by 20, but we knew with the offensive power we have, we would have a chance if we got going early.”
The victory came on the heels of a tough loss to Eastern Oregon on Saturday night that saw the NCU starting lineup average over 35 minutes played. The Beacons once again called on their primary players to take a huge role on tired legs. Hosley played another 38 minutes, Tyner was on the floor for 37 and Ernest Ugoagu played 35.
Coach Alexander said, “That is why we worked so hard the last three or four months on conditioning. I told the guys early that we would be the best conditioned team, knowing there would be weekends like this where you have to go 75 minutes and you have to be ready to do it. I wasn’t worried about how many minutes they played on Saturday because we were prepared.”
Behind Tyner’s 36-point night, Hosley finished with a stat-sheet-filling 15 points, three steals and team-highs of five rebounds and five assist. Reece Robinson scored 13 points and Shawn Carson added six points and three blocks.
The College of Idaho (14-2, 3-1 CCC) were led by Nate Bruneel, scoring 15 points on 3-for-6 shooting from three-point range. Keun Palu-Thompson scored 14 while Berryhill finished with 12 points off four triples.
Jake Bruner led all players with nine rebounds while Talon Pinckney finished with nine points, six assists and four steals.
The win was NCU’s first ever victory over an NAIA No. 1-Ranked team in four tries and it pushes them to 10-3 on the season for just the third time in the NAIA era. The Beacons also move to 2-1 in the Cascade Conference, one of six teams with one loss.
The Beacons will take a much deserved break for the holidays, returning to action on December 29 when they travel to face Evergreen State, followed by a clash with Northwest University on December 30.
The Yotes, meanwhile, have a quick turnaround as they play host to rival Eastern Oregon University on Tuesday night, 7:30 pm.