NIC MEN'S BASKETBALL: Johnson gets Cardinals going
SHORELINE, Wash. — In an effort to get sophomore Brendan Johnson back to a level he played at in a shortened spring season, North Idaho College coach Corey Symons moved the 6-foot-5 guard into the starting lineup for Friday’s nonconference game against Shoreline.
That moved paid off, with Johnson finishing with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists as the Cardinals beat the Dolphins 70-65.
“We’ve just been struggling a little bit and wanted to mix up the lineup,” Symons said. “Brendan was such a big time player for us in the spring, and we’ve had a tough time getting him going this year. He’s capable of and does so many things well, and he led us in assists. We just need to keep him on that level.”
NIC took a 68-59 lead on a 3-pointer by freshman Taden King with 3:52 remaining.
“Each game we’ve played, even our losses, we’ve led by double digits,” Symons said. “We just haven’t developed that closing mentality. It was nice to hit some shots and get it done, get a close win and get that monkey off our back. We get everyone’s best punch and we’ve got to come ready to play each night.”
NIC (4-5) faces Umpqua in a NWAC Crossover game at Everett Community College on Thursday at 5 p.m.
Jaylyn Stepney scored 25 points for Shoreline (3-2).
NORTH IDAHO
Brendan Johnson 8-17 0-0 19, Daniel Santana 2-4 1-2 6, Cooper DeWitt 6-14 0-0 1, Xavier Bailey 1-9 0-0 2, Akeyse Rice 0-0 0-0 0, Julius Mims 3-6 0-0 6, Jack Kiesbuy 0-3 0-0 0, Trae Hugs 0-0 0-0 0, Taden King 4-7 1-2 11, Jalen Skalskiy 2-6 2-2 6, Gavin Gilstrap 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 28-71 4-6 70.
SHORELINE
A.J. Boyd 4-13 3-3 11, David Perkins 2-10 0-0 4, Jayln Stepney 10-23 0-0 24, Tim Opany 1-3 0-2 2, Deshawn McFerrin 5-8 1-1 11, Rayquan Valentin 0-5 0-0 0, Railen Wheeler Jr. 0-0 0-0 0, Morgan Brown 6-12 0-2 12, Jeziel Dewitte 0-2 0-2 0. Totals 28-76 4-10 65.
Halftime — NIC 34-25. 3-point goals — NIC 10-28 (Johnson 3-9, Santana 1-2, DeWitt 4-9, Bailey 0-2, Kiesbuy 0-1, King 2-4, Skalskiy 0-1), SCC 5-18 (Perkins 0-5, Stepney 5-11, Valentin 0-2). Rebounds — NIC 42 (DeWitt, Mims 8), SCC 41 (McFerrin 12). Assists — NIC 7 (Johnson 4), SCC 7 (Boyd, Perkins, Brown 2). Team fouls — NIC 10, SCC 11. Fouled out — none.