CALDWELL, Idaho – Fueled by torrid shooting and a 21-point halftime lead, No. 3 seed College of Idaho handed Vanguard a 97-78 defeat in the Caldwell Bracket of the NAIA Men's Basketball Championship Opening Round on Friday night at the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
The 14th-seeded Lions ended their season at 18-13 overall. The Coyotes advance to Saturday's second round against OUAZ, which was a 93-70 winner over Tennessee Southern in the earlier game.
What Happened?: The Coyotes made 21-of-31 shots (67.7%) in the first half to stake themselves to a 53-32 halftime lead. The Yotes finished at nearly 60 percent for the game, hitting 34-of-57 from the field with 10 makes coming from three-point land.
Vanguard shot a respectable 47.8 percent (32-of-67) from the floor, but managed just 5-of-17 from distance.
Garrett White (SR/Post Falls, ID) almost singlehandedly kept the Lions afloat, scoring 26 of his season-high 30 points in the second half after battling first half foul trouble. White knocked down 11-of-17 in the final 20 minutes and finished 13-of-22 for the game, including three treys.
In his final game as a Lion, James Moore (SR/Talco, TX) scored 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting to go along with a team-high tying six rebounds.
Jordan Caruso (JR/New York, NY) had a solid game off the bench for VU. In 22 minutes, he posted nine points, six rebounds and a career-high eight assists. Isaac Davis (SR/Valencia, CA) had nine points and five assists.
Five Yotes scored in double figures, led by Drew Wyman's 18 points.
Vanguard got off to a decent start, and forged a 7-7 tie off a Moore tip-in. Caruso's layup cut the C of I lead to 12-9 with 14:10 remaining in the first half.
C of I used a 9-2 run to open up a double-digit lead, 21-11, but the Lions fought back with a pair of baskets from Moore and White. However, White was whistled for his second foul on the next play, and went to the bench with 10:16 to go.
Trailing by six at that point, the Lions were outscored 26-15 during White's absence until he returned with 2:25 remaining. The Yotes buried four three-pointers during the stretch.
Johnny Radford hit a three and was fouled, converting a four-point play as C of I opened up a 47-27 lead at the 2:51 mark.
VU trailed by as many as 28 points in the second half, but narrowed the deficit down to as little as 14 late in the game.
Playing in his home state of Idaho, White was largely responsible for denting the C of I lead. Over a four-minute stretch, he reeled off 15 straight points to spearhead a 19-5 surge and force a C of I timeout trailing 87-73 with 3:28 remaining.
VU couldn't get any closer as the Yotes made six straight free throws to ice the game.
Moore finished his career in the Blue and Gold with 481 rebounds, seventh-most in VU history.
What Was Said?: "College of Idaho played about as good a half of basketball as can be played in the first half," said Head Coach Rhett Soliday. "They shot the ball extremely well and when they missed, they were really tough on the glass. I was proud of our guys for staying in the fight and cutting the lead down in the second half. Credit C of I again for doing what a great team does at home in the way they closed it out. I'm very thankful for our five seniors and everything they've meant to our program. I could not be more proud of all they've accomplished in their time as Lions and what they've meant to our university."
