TWIN FALLS, Idaho – It was a 1-1 weekend for the Colorado Northwestern Community College Men's Basketball team which made the first of three trips to Twin Falls on Friday and Saturday as part of non-conference action.
Friday brought a hard-fought, 79-63 loss to #10-ranked Indian Hills Community College. Saturday saw CNCC bounce back with a dominant, 61-38 victory over Central Wyoming. With the split, the Spartans improve to an impressive 6-1 on the season. Freshman guard
Carson Forsey finished the trip averaging 14 points per game. Redshirt sophomore forward
Jamir Todd pulled down nearly nine rebounds per contest.
In the weekend opener, Colorado Northwestern took on the #10-ranked team in all the nation in Indian Hills. A slow shooting start at 30-percent from the floor for CNCC put the Rangely squad in an early hole. The defense by IHCC disrupted the offense and limited the Spartans to 24 points in the first half as the Warriors tallied 45 for a double-digit lead at the break. In the second half, Colorado Northwestern exploded at a 51-percent clip from the floor. Forsey scored all of his 22 points in the final 20 minutes on 8-of-11 shooting. With nine minutes to play, sophomore guard
Cole Johnson hit a jumper from the free-throw line which cut Indian Hills' lead to just eight points. Unfortunately, CNCC couldn't get any closer, falling 79-63. Forsey's 22 points led all scorers in the game. Johnson and
Mitch Jeppesen added 10 points apiece as well. Eight rebounds for
Mason Mickelsen and three blocks by
Arthur Videira rounded out the highlights.
On Saturday, Head Coach
Ben Cruickshank's squad flexed its defensive muscle against Central Wyoming. A back-and-forth battle through the first 20 minutes saw eight lead changes, and neither team led by more than five points. Johnson's seven points and three assists in the first half guided the Spartans to a 26-23 lead at the break. Colorado Northwestern intensified the defensive pressure in the second half and held CWCC to 15 points on 22-percent shooting from the floor including just two three-pointers on 15 attempts. It helped CNCC pull away to a 61-38 victory. Jeppesen was tops for the Spartans with 12 points. Johnson and
Tyler Christensen were right behind touting 10 points apiece.
Jamir Todd pulled down 12 rebounds.
Coach Cruickshank and the Spartans are back in Twin Falls, Idaho, this weekend where they will face Colorado Northeastern Junior College and Western Nebraska Community College.
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."
