Cardinals knock off rival CSI in thriller
TWIN FALLS — It took a half, but that second half was something the North Idaho College men’s basketball team can build on moving forward.
Both the good, and the not-so good stuff.
Nate Pryor hit a free-throw with three seconds remaining for the Cardinals, who rallied from a 36-27 halftime deficit to beat the College of Southern Idaho 72-70 in the opening day of the Wright PT/Physician’s Immediate Care Invitational on Thursday.
It was the first matchup between the schools since NIC left the NJCAA’s Scenic West Athletic Conference following the 2016 season.
“It was a great win,” Symons said. “In my 16 years of coaching in junior college, this is one of the toughest places to play. We had to play our ‘A’ game to beat them. It was definitely a step in the right direction. Now, we’ve got two more days and another one we’ve got to get tomorrow.”
Emmit Taylor III hit a 3-pointer with 9:37 remaining to tie the game at 49-49 for NIC, which trailed by as many as 11 in the first half. Mike Hood gave CSI a 56-54 lead on a 3-pointer with 6:31 remaining. NIC built a 66-58 lead on free throws by Yusuf Mohamed with 3:30 remaining, but didn’t seal the win until Pryor hit a free throw in the final seconds.
“It was huge to get Nate back,” said Symons of Pryor, who finished with 21 points and five assists in his season debut. “It took us about a half to get into a flow with him because they guys have been used to playing without him.”
Mohamed had 22 points and 12 rebounds for NIC (5-0), which faces Yakima Valley today at 10:30 a.m. PST.
“It was a great team effort,” Symons said. “We gritted one out and had to go deep into our bench tonight, but the guys found a way to get it done.”
Hood finished with 28 points for CSI (8-4).
NORTH IDAHO
Emmit Taylor III 4-15 1-2 13, Joey Naccarato 3-5 0-0 7, Phillip Malatare 1-6 0-0 2, James Carlson 0-1 0-2 0, Jaden Dewar 0-0 0-0 0, Yusuf Mohamed 6-12 9-10 22, Nate Pryor 7-12 7-10 21, Ismael Valdez 2-4 1-3 5, Marcus Austin 0-7 2-4 2, Tyler Tanner 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-62 20-31 72.
SOUTHERN IDAHO
Mike Hood 8-20 8-9 28, Stevie Smith 5-9 1-1 14, Kendall McHugh 3-9 0-0 9, Sawyer Storms 2-5 1-4 7, Nehemie Kabeya 0-4 1-4 1, Sebastian Reynoso-Jimenez 3-4 0-3 6, Deng Dut 1-2 0-1 3, Jackson Ruai 1-2 0-0 2, Spencer Roberts 0-1 0-0 0, Chayce Polynice 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-56 11-22 70.
Halftime — CSI 36-27. 3-point goals — NIC 6-24 (Taylor III 4-14, Naccarato 1-2, Mohamed 1-3, Pryor 0-2, Austin 0-3), CSI 13-32 (Hood 4-12, Smith 3-5, McHugh 3-9, Storms 2-4, Dut 1-2). Rebounds — NIC 43 (Mohamed 12), CSI 30 (Smith 12). Assists — NIC 13 (Pryor 5), CSI 17 (Dut 5). Team fouls — NIC 21, CSI 22. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — Mohamed.