Box Score



NAMPA, Idaho — It might be hard to believe defense won it when your foe scores 103 points, but that's exactly what happened Thursday night at the Johnson Sports Center.

The Crusaders hunkered down defensively over the final 15 minutes in a game against the nation's highest scoring team and turned an 11-point deficit into a 107-103 Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory.

"We continue to fight, and every night that you fight and compete defensively and rebound the ball, you have an opportunity to win, and our team — we're learning that," NNU head men's basketball coach Dave Daniels said after his team's fourth victory in five games.
 

A hard-fought, comeback victory against a team that doesn't believe in defense, but in putting up as many points as possible.

Simon Fraser came into the game averaging a nation's best 119.4 points per game and hoists up 90 shot attempts a night.

And the Clan seemed well on their way to 119 or more as they stretched a 58-56 halftime lead to 83-72 just 5 minutes into the final session.

Then came an important timeout for the Crusaders.

"I really challenged the guys to come out and play and really care every possessions," Daniels said of his quick pep talk. "I couldn't be prouder of the way they responded and really guarded and were really disciplined."

Out of the timeout, the Crusaders (6-10 overall, 4-2 GNAC) began their charge with offense — back-to-back 3-pointers from Matyas Hering.

And the defense made those baskets count even more as NNU held the Clan (6-8, 1-5) to just two buckets the next 6 minutes during a 16-4 Crusader run. Aubrey Ball capped the run with a layup, giving NNU an 89-87 edge with 9 minutes to play.
 

The teams traded buckets over the next few minute until two Hering free throws put the Crusaders on top for good, up 93-92 with 6 minutes left on the clock.

NNU then held then Clan to just three baskets and two free throws until the last second of the game as Simon Fraser finished with a modest 20 points in the final 15 minutes of the contest.

Meanwhile, the Crusaders continued to pull away as a Kevin Rima bucket made it 97-94 with just under four minutes left, an offensive rebound by Pol Olivier led to two NNU free throws and a 104-100 lead, then a steal by Kinney in the final 10 seconds led to two Alex Birketoft freebies that iced the win.

In all, seven Crusaders notched double-digit scoring efforts in a balanced team victory, with Rima turning in his 13^th career double-double to lead the way. Rima had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

"That just says a ton about the team we're becoming," Daniels said, "… guys are sharing the ball, and tonight you saw that nobody cared who scored."

Hering and Bouna N'Diaye each scored 16, Kinney had 14 points, Ball netted 13, David Shedrick scored 11 and Birketoft added 10 points for the Crusaders, who next host Western Washington at 7 p.m. on Saturday.