SALEM, Ore. – The Corban University men's basketball team kept it close with the No. 4 College of Idaho Yotes on Friday evening in the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center, but the Yotes showed why they are ranked so high, finishing strong in the second half and winning 74-59.  On a night that saw the first-ever Corban Warrior mascot, Cadmar, unveiled, the Warriors could not keep pace with College of Idaho during the final 20 minutes, resulting in the tough Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) loss.

With the first 300 Corban students receiving a free Corban Warrior Gold Commemorative t-shirt on the evening, the fans packed the house and created a great environment to welcome Cadmar to the game while cheering on the Warriors.  Both teams began the game with a three-pointer, and it was Warrior senior guard Jordan Carter (Salem, Ore.) who drained from long range for the Warriors, extending Corban's streak with a three-pointer made to 925 consecutive games, still tied for the longest streak in all of collegiate basketball.

(Cadmar the Warrior was unveiled prior to the start of the men's basketball game on Friday night)

Junior forward Cyrus Ward (Gig Harbor, Wash.) kept the Warriors in the game early, converting on some nifty layups around the big men of the Yotes. 

C of I took an 18-12 advantage midway through the first half, but Ward scored a pair of buckets and sophomore guard Caleb Herzberg (Beaverton, Ore.) nailed a jumper, tying the contest for the Warriors.

A few minutes later, Ward again finished strong at the rack, and this time his bucket gave Corban the lead at 23-22.  The Yotes would regain the advantage by halftime, however, taking a lead into the break, 29-26.

In what was a very defensive first half, the second stanza opened up quite a bit, as both teams found their offensive rhythm a bit more.  At the 14:18 mark in the second stanza, Corban freshman guard AJ Monterossi (Beaverton, Ore.) made a layup to keep Corban within five points at 39-34.

C of I continued to respond, however, as Jordan O'Byrne began a huge second half for the Yotes, draining four three-pointers in total to go along with a 3-for-3 effort from the line.  Monterossi battled for Corban, making a jumper from the top of the paint and converting on another layup for the Warriors.

The Yotes (17-3, 6-2 CCC) extended their lead to as many as 20 points late in the contest as they continued to make shots from beyond the arc, including seven in all during the second stanza, and ultimately Corban freshman guard Kade Crossland (Buhl, Idaho) drained two three-pointers, but it was too little too late for the Navy and Gold.

"We did a great job in the first half of finding their shooters and cutting off passing angles to their posts," stated head coach Steve Masten.  "In the second half, we had too many mental lapses in those areas and it cost us.  We gave a great effort, but need to make fewer mistakes to beat a top-5 team."

One of the areas where Corban lost the game was in bench points, as C of I's bench outscored Corban's 37-15.  As a team, Corban shot 45.1% from the field, while the Yotes shot 50.0% from the floor.  Individually, Ward registered a team-best 16 points on 7-for-10 shooting, while Carter added 15 points for the Warriors. 

For the Yotes, it was O'Byrne who recorded a game-best 17 points, while Michael Goward tacked on 13 points.

The Warriors (9-8, 2-6 CCC) return to the hardwood tomorrow evening when they face Eastern Oregon University.  Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.