NAMPA, Idaho – Turnovers turned out to be the Crusaders downfall Friday night.

Northwest Nazarene turned the ball over 20 times, some coming at crucial moments, allowing Montana Western to hang on to the lead all night en route to a 73-65 win over the Crusaders in the NNU/C of I Invitational Classic at the Johnson Sports Center.

"Turnovers and missed looks," NNU coach Dave Daniels said. "We missed some really good opportunities at the basket."

Unwilling to make excuses for the outcome, coach Daniels added that the team only had four healthy players at practice on Tuesday, so the team is still working hard to come together early in the season.

"The injury bug has really kept us from gelling offensively," he said. "As we get guys healthy were going to continue to turn the corner offensively."

The Bulldogs forged a 20-10 lead in the opening half on a Kurtis Parsons 3-pointer, then hung on as the Crusaders (1-2 overall), whittled away, closing to tie the game 22-22 on a John Van Beuren bucket with 5 minutes, 52 seconds left until halftime.

Jordan Overstreet answered with a 3 for Montana Western (6-2), which never let the Crusaders draw even again.

But NNU tried again and again, getting to 28-26 down on a Mario Donaldson bucket with 3 minutes left in the first half, and closing to 55-53 on a pair of Kevin Rima free throws with 6 ½ minutes remaining  in the game.

The Crusaders had a chance to tie, or take the lead, down two with 6 minutes remaining after a defensive stop, but one of those 20 turnovers kept NNU from firing up a shot.

Jake Owsley promptly answered with a bucket for the Bulldogs, and Montana Western inched away to hold on for the win.

"Very proud of our effort tonight," Daniels said, as the Crusaders continually battled to grab the lead.

"I thought our men really battled defensively and on the boards," he added, as NNU held the Bulldogs to 22-of-63 (34.9 percent) shooting and won the battle of the boards, 42-32.

Donaldson led the Crusaders with 19 points and six rebounds in the setback, while Rima tossed in a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds. Grayson Moore added eight points and 10 boards for NNU.

Maazin Butler led the Bulldogs with 19 points and Owsley added 16 points and seven rebounds for UMW.

Both teams return to action at the Johnson Sports Center on Saturday, wrapping up play in the Invitational Classic as UMW plays The College of Idaho for the second time this season, with tip-off at 3 p.m. The Crusaders meet Colorado-Colorado Springs at 5 p.m.

College of Idaho 78, Colorado-Colorado Springs 74
 
NAMPA, Idaho - Demetrius Perkins' steal and one-handed jam in the final seconds snapped a tie score and lifted The College of Idaho to a 78-74 comeback win over the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs in the opening game of the NNU/C of I Invitational Classic hosted by Northwest Nazarene at the Johnson Sports Center on Friday night.

The Coyotes (6-2 overall) – who played the game as an exhibition - rallied from a 15-point deficit late in the first half, taking the lead 66-64 on a Zach Peterson bucket with 8 minutes left in the game.

Both teams traded the lead from there, and with 40 seconds left, the Mountain Lions (2-1) had the ball with a chance at a game-winning shot.

Tied 74-74, UCCS ran the shot-clock down until Perkins made a steal with just under 10 seconds remaining in the game.

The Coyote junior raced the length of the floor and, all alone, jammed home the game-winner.

Josh Wilson added two late free throws, icing the win for the C of I, which got 16 points from Joe Vaz and 15 from Wilson.

Darius Pardner led the Mountain Lions with a game-high 18 points.

The C of I next plays Montana Western on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Invitational Classic, while Colorado-Colorado Springs plays host Northwest Nazarene at 5 p.m. on Saturday.