ONTARIO, Ore. – Two wins in three days provided the highlights for Colorado Northwestern Men's Basketball just before the New Year at Treasure Valley Community College's home invitational.
The Spartans downed Jump Start on Thursday, Dec. 28, by a score of 90-49. It became back-to-back wins for CNCC on Friday, Dec. 30, thanks to a 83-70 victory over Blue Mountain Community College. Head Coach Ben Cruickshank's squad closed the trip and the 2023 calendar on Saturday, Dec. 30, with a 69-51 setback against the host Treasure Valley Community College.
Thursday's contest was a dominating performance for the Spartans as they took an early lead and never looked back. By halftime, the margin was 14 for CNCC which nearly tripled by the final buzzer with 90-49 on the scoreboard.
Cole Johnson led the way with 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor. That mark included 3-for-4 production from behind the arc while going 7-of-8 at the free-throw line. Johnson added seven rebounds as well. Elsewhere,
Mitch Jeppesen scored 16 points off the bench and pulled down seven rebounds.
Jaxon Parkinson chipped in 14 points and Tyler Christiensen added 13 points. Also notable was
Mason Mickelsen's team-high 13 rebounds.
On Friday, Colorado Northwestern road a rollercoaster with Blue Mountain Community College. The Spartans controlled most of the first half with a lead as big as 13 points. An 11-point, halftime lead for CNCC was fueled by a defense that held BMCC to just 23 points in 20 minutes. The roller coaster really took off in the second half when Blue Mountain put together several big runs on the way to their own nine-point lead. The Spartans eventually found away with an outburst of their own which resulted in 49 second-half points and an 83-70 win. Johnson proved tops again after scoring 25 points on 69-percent shooting. He was 3-of-5 from three-point range and perfect on four attempts at the free-throw line. Christensen was right behind Johnson, notching 23 points while adding seven rebounds.
Jude Ballstaedt and Jeppesen combined for 25 points. Mickelsen cleaned nine boards off the glass.
Saturday saw CNCC's three-game win streak halted after poor shooting and a large disparity in free throws doomed the Spartans. Coach Cruickshank's squad went just 36-percent from the floor including a 15-percent mark from three-point range. The result was only 51 points. Colorado Northwestern also attempted just five free throws despite attempting 37 shots in the paint. Treasure Valley earned 18 trips to the charity stripe. Individually,
Santiago Casarin tallied a team-high 13 points. Johnson's 11 points and Mickelsen's 10 rebounds rounded out the box score highlights.
Colorado Northwestern returns to action on Jan. 11 with its conference opener against the College of Southern Nevada. The home tip at Hefley Gym is set for 6 p.m.
Fans can keep up with CNCC men's basketball on social media at @CnccMbb on "X" (formerly Twitter), at cncc_mbb on Instagram, and on Facebook by searching "CNCC Men's Basketball."
