LEWISTON, ID – No. 22 LC State Men’s Basketball is one step closer to a Cascade Conference title after Friday’s 86-63 victory over Corban (Ore.). The LC Warriors are tied at the top of the CCC standings with one game left of the regular season.
LC State shot 57.4% from the floor and turned the ball over just five times in the contest. The offense knocked down 14 3-pointers, second-most this season, with seven different LC State Warriors with at least one. Jamare’ Childs led the charge with 18 points on a 6-for-8 performance from long range. Nine different LC Warriors grabbed a rebound and eight had at least one of the team’s 22 assists.
“Proud of our guys. Big win,” coach Austin Johnson said. “The percentages don’t necessarily show it, but I thought we really defended well. Offensively we did a phenomenal job of taking care of and moving the ball. Twenty-two assists to five turnovers reflect that. Jamare’ got going from 3 and it seemed to spread to the whole team. We have a quick turnaround against a really good Bushnell team tomorrow and will have to be at our best. Excited to see how we respond.”
The win moves the LC State record to 21-6 on the season and 15-4 in Cascade Conference play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Corban opened the contest on a 5-0 run before a triple by Childs put LC State on the board. John Lustig tallied three straight baskets before free throws by Brandon Suber and another 3 by Childs capped an 11-point run with LC State in front 14-7. Corban answered to knot the score 14-14 at 10:29, but back-to-back 3-pointers by Dylan Skaife and Trevor Manning had the margin at 20-14 at 9:28.
Dallon Morgan added a pair of 3s during a back-and-forth, and a triple from Skaife made it 34-23 with 4:16 to play in the half. Childs, Grayson Hunt and Suber combined for a seven-point swing and Skaife ended the half with a basket for a 43-30 advantage.
Lustig knocked down a rare 3-pointer three minutes into the second half as the LC Warriors extended their lead to 49-36. He added a layup before a triple by Peyton Nordland made it 54-39 by 15:23.
LC State maintained its lead as the half went on, and surged further ahead after back-to-back 3-pointers by Childs had the advantage at 72-50 at 7:37. Suber scored four straight points for the largest lead of the contest at 76-50.
The hosting Warriors closed out the scoring with back-to-back 3s by Mateen Usui and Childs.
STAT RECAP
Childs led the contest with 18 points on a career-high six 3-pointers. He went 6-for-8 from 3-point range. Lustig added 15 points with a game-high seven rebounds, and Skaife scored 14 points with a pair of triples.
Morgan tallied 13 points with five rebounds and Suber scored 11 points with a contest-best seven assists.
LC State forced 13 turnovers and committed only five. The home team shot 58.3% from 3-point range (14-for-24) and 57.4% from the field overall.
Tj Zimmermann led Corban with 13 points and six rebounds.
