Galloway Leads Yotes To Season Opening 79-70 Win
DILLON, Mont. - Playing their first game in 261 days, The College of Idaho opened their 2020-21 season with an emphatic, come-from-behind, 79-70 victory over Montana Tech inside Straugh Gymnasium.
Jalen Galloway scored a game-high 24 points, as the No. 8-ranked Coyotes (1-0) won their seventh-straight season opener and ran their school-record win streak to 26 games.
"I could see it in our players' eyes," said head coach,
Colby Blaine. "They were so ecstatic to get out on the court and see the reward after all of the adversity we have been through over the last few months."
Trailing 46-42 at the break, the Yotes scored the first 10 points of the second half – including consecutive 3-pointers from Galloway – to take the lead for good. C of I held the Orediggers (0-2) to 4-of-26 shooting after halftime.
"Our players were so composed," Blaine said. "Tech is a tough team to defend, they are physical on the block. We were able to win the rebound margin in the second half and got much more efficient offensively – we played a lot like we did down the stretch last season. It's as if we picked up right where we left off at the National Tournament."
C of I took their first lead of the game at 8-7, after an Ivory Miles-Williams bucket, but Tech got a jumper and 3-ball from Derrius Collins, part of a 16-4 run, to take their biggest lead of the night (23-12) with just over 10 minutes left in the period.
Following a time out, the Yotes answered – Derek Wadsworth canned a triple and Ricardo Time splashed a short jumper and a 3-ball – getting C of I within 26-24. Johnny Radford capped the run with a 4-point play, to knot the score at 28-28.
In the second half, C of I built a 64-54 lead midway through the half, but the Diggers used a sizable advantage at the free throw line to chip away at the deficit, cutting the margin to 68-67 on two Camdyn Larance freebies with seven minutes left. Time answered with an 18-footer and Miles-Williams converted an inside basket to extend the lead to five, with C of I holding Tech to just one made field goal the rest of the way.
Galloway finished 8-of-11 from the field, converting all four of his 3-point attempts. Radford scored 11 in his C of I debut, with both Miles-Williams and Connor Desaulniers adding 10 points. Time had nine points and five rebounds, with transfer Elijah Jackson scoring six points, with eight rebounds and four assists.
"Jalen Galloway had a huge night for us," Blaine said. "He has been playing as good as anyone over the last month in practice and tonight, he played so calm and relaxed. Johnny has such a bright future for us, he plays with such confidence for a freshman. Elijah was a huge key for us tonight, keeping possessions alive with offensive rebounds and led our squad in assists."
Taylor England led Tech with 22 points and 10 rebounds – with 14 of his points coming from the stripe – while Sindou Diallo scoring 18.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- It was the latest starting date for the Coyotes since the 1977-78 season (November 29)
- It has been 364 calendar days since the Yotes last loss (an 86-76 loss at The Masters on Nov. 29, 2019)
- C of I made 13-of-24 field goals (54-percent) in the second half and had a 21-19 rebound margin after the break
- The Yotes had five blocked shots – three by Desaulniers and two by freshman Paul Wilson
- Jackson had the play of the night, a one-hand baseline slam dunk in traffic midway through the first half
- It was the Coyotes first win in Straugh Gymnasium since 2006, an 87-83 win over Montana Western.