SALEM, Ore. – A contest featuring eleven different lead changes and ten ties finally came to a close with the nationally ranked Yotes of The College of Idaho narrowly escaping with a 78-75 road win over the Corban University Men's Basketball team. The No. 5-ranked Yotes cashed in on four free throws during the final 17 seconds of play to hold the slight advantage heading into the final Warriors' possession, with the buzzer-beating three-pointer falling just short and snapping the Navy and Gold's four-game winning streak.

"Our guys battled hard and did a lot of really good things against a nationally ranked opponent," shared Corban head coach Taylor Kelly. "Unfortunately, we came up just a little short. This group has not reached their full potential, but the character and commitment we possess will lead us to maxing out. I believe in these guys and look forward to seeing them respond tomorrow night."

In yet another exciting installment between the Warriors (9-4, 6-2) and Yotes (13-2, 8-1), the pair of conference opponents battled it out via the free throw line and three-point arc in a game of pure momentum, with C of I finding a way to emerge victorious and extend their own winning streak to eight since their conference opening loss to Southern Oregon University.

While Corban emerged victorious beyond the three-point line with a 47% success rate compared to just 28% for The College of Idaho, the Yotes shot the majority of the 50 total free throws in tonight's game and converted on 69% of them while the Warriors missed nearly half of their attempts.

C of I led by as many as six points prior to the second media timeout of the opening half, but a furious end to the period by Corban allowed the hometown program to secure an eight-point lead heading into the locker rooms. Senior guard Reece Van Lierop entered and provided the Navy and Gold with the spark they needed to reenergize the crowd, hitting four-straight three-pointers on four-consecutive possessions to flip their six-point deficit into a five-point lead and hold the valuable momentum at halftime.

The No. 5-ranked Yotes refused to back down from the challenges that Coach Kelly and his program had provided in the Friday night matchup, as C of I rebounded within a matter of minutes to cut the Corban lead to a single possession. The remainder of the contest would be the wildest back-and-forth shifting of momentum one could expect between conference foes in a battle at the top of the standings, with neither team expanding their lead above two baskets for the final 16 minutes of action.

With 17 seconds remaining in a 74-all score, Yotes' guard Samaje Morgan drove baseline and threw up a prayer with one second left on the shot clock, where Corban senior guard Dirk Helaire II swatted the attempt back to the court in style. However, a foul was called on a Warrior off-ball that led to a pair of free throws for Morgan, allowing the Yotes to take a two-point lead and the momentum back in their grasp with just seconds remaining on the scoreboard.

In the final two possessions, the Navy and Gold had two opportunities to force a draw both at the free throw line and in a buzzer-beating three-point attempt but came up just short in both instances to suffer their first home loss of the 2023-24 season.

Warriors' junior guard Aundree Polk scored a team-high 20 points off the bench in Corban's near upset win while adding three assists along the way. Junior forward Jay Wilson added another 16 points along the way of his current streak through the CCC, hauling in a pair of rebounds and swatting a block into the stands. Van Lierop and Helaire added 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Morgan tallied a game-high 21 points tonight for the visiting Yotes, hitting eight of his 12 forced free throws to help his program eke out a win. Guard Drew Wyman added 18 points and a trio of rebounds, while forward Tyler Robinett scored 11 points and secured four boards.

The Warriors are back on Tim Hills Court tomorrow evening at 5pm for the final game of their four-game homestand, as they'll host Eastern Oregon University (4-11, 3-6) in a 5pm tipoff.

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