LEWISTON, Idaho – The fourth-ranked LC State Men’s Basketball team matched is scoring efforts from Thursday with a 99-67 victory over Multnomah on Friday night. The Warriors, now 18-1 on the season, have won their last 10 games and are 11-0 at home. Five LC players scored in double-digits and two had double-figure rebound performances on a night where every Warrior scored. Nathan Fromm led the Warriors with 18 points and Damek Mitchell grabbed 12 boards.
“Tonight was another fun night for our guys,” Head Coach Austin Johnson said. “We’re very appreciative to our administration for allowing some family and fans to these games. It means a ton to our players with all the adversity they’ve faced this year. Nate Fromm got into a groove and had a great scoring stretch that really helped us during what was an off shooting night. The young guys gave us strong energy to close out the game. It was great to get everyone involved.”
Multnomah bounced back well to begin the contest and matched the Warriors nearly shot-for-shot, even taking a momentary lead, through the first seven minutes. Back-to-back baskets by freshmen Brennen Newsom and Silas Bennion built a small lead, 19-13, and a basket Oreon Courtney kept the momentum going.
The Warriors put up 11 straight, with four points from Hodges Bailey and five from Fromm, to make it a 17-point contest (40-23), and a run of eight closed out the first 20 minutes with LC leading 48-28. LC State outscored the Lions 19-5 in the last 4:44 of the half.
LC State widened the gap in the second frame with an and-one play by Bailey. Multnomah cut the lead the 12 at 14:15, but a short burst of four points from Fromm and a basket by Bennion widened the gap to 18 (68-50) at 11:32. Fromm continued his run with nine points in a four-minute span, before a run of nine with buckets from Bailey, Courtney and Colton Spencer made it 80-54 with 7:13 to play.
The newcomers continued to contribute in the final minutes as Grant Ellison, Spencer, Sam Stockton, Will Abram and Newsom all found the basket. Stockton took a rebound down the court and laid it in for the final bucket of the game to make it 99-67.
Fromm led the Warriors with 18 points and was a perfect 8-for-8 from the field, including 2-for-2 from 3. Bailey tallied 16 points, Bradley scored 14, Newsom had 11 and Courtney scored 10. Every Warrior scored in the contest.
Mitchell led the defense with 12 boards and Travis Yenor grabbed 11. Mitchell dealt six assists and Bailey had a pair of steals. Abram had two blocks while Bradley and Stockton each blocked a shot.
As a team, the Warriors shot 54.5 percent from the field and grabbed 59 rebounds, compared to the Lions’ 29. They dished out 23 assists and kept Multnomah at just eight. LC’s defense kept the Lions at a 31.0 shooting percentage. 56 of LC’s points came off the bench.
The NAIA will reveal the matchups for the Opening Rounds on March 4 via its Facebook page. LC State is hosting both a men’s and women’s Opening Round as part of the NAIA’s national tournament.
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