Griffitts helps NIC women knock off Southern Idaho
TWIN FALLS - Sophomore Kama Griffitts scored a game-high 27 points as the 25th-ranked North Idaho Cardinals downed the 18th- ranked Southern Idaho Golden Eagles 83-76 in a Scenic West Conference game on Saturday.
"Kama has been playing great for us," NIC coach Chris Carlson said. "Ever since the Christmas break and the Walla Walla game, she's been on a roll. She's definitely leading us right now."
Tugce Canitez scored 11 of her 23 points in the first half for the Cardinals.
"Tugce was a warrior for us tonight," Carlson said. "She had another double-double and is always fighting for the ball. She's been playing great also."
NIC took a 40-35 halftime lead and didn't look back.
"The whole game was great," Carlson said. "There was 16 lead changes, lots of players banging together and fighting for the ball. The game seemed like a real battle. There was a lot of nervous players tonight, but our sophomores didn’t get a win down here last year and were a little too jacked up early on. We just gutted it out tonight.”
Kiki Edwards-Teasley scored 13 points for NIC (15-2, 1-2 SWAC), which hosts Eastern Utah on Thursday at Christianson Gymnasium. Eastern Utah defeated Salt Lake in other SWAC action on Saturday to put the Cardinals one game out of first in the league.
“We needed to get a win tonight,” Carlson said. “Now we’ll get home for five straight and see if we can’t build on it.”
Felicity Jones scored 22 points for CSI 14-4, 1-2.
NORTH IDAHO
Kama Griffitts 10-17 3-4 27, Chantel Divilbiss 0-4 0-0 0, Camille Reynolds 3-11 0-0 8, Tugce Canitez 8-12 7-8 23, Amy Warbrick 0-1 0-0 0, Korina Baker 0-5 3-6 3, Kiki Edwards-Teasley 4-7 4-6 13, Julia Salmio 0-0 0-0 0, Amanda Carlton 2-3 0-0 5, Deanna Dotts 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 29-62 17-24 83.
SOUTHERN IDAHO
Kylie Hardison 1-4 0-0 3, Guilhermina El-Mir 0-2 2-2 2, Tayllor Gipson 1-3 0-0 2, Felicity Jones 11-13 0-0 22, Taylor Altenburg 2-5 0-1 4, Tina Fakahafua 0-2 0-0 0, Kyler Parai 2-9 0-0 5, Laurel Kearsley 4-9 2-2 10, Mechela Barnes 5-11 4-5 16, Chakala Carthen 3-6 0-2 6, Fanny Cavallo 3-4 0-1 6. Totals 32-68 8-13 76.
Halftime — NIC 40-35. 3-point goals — NIC 8-25 (Griffitts 4-8, Divilbiss 0-4, Reynolds 2-7, Warbrick 0-1, Baker 0-3, Edwards-Teasley 1-1, Carlton 1-1). CSI 4-22 (Hardison 1-3, Gipson 0-1, Jones 0-1, Altenburg 0-2, Parai 1-7, Kearsley 0-1, Barnes 2-5). Rebounds — NIC 40 (Canitez 11). CSI 37 (Altenburg 6). Assists — NIC 11 (Canitez 3). CSI 17 (Fakahafua, Barnes 4). Team fouls — NIC 16, CSI 24. Fouled out — none.