“It was really good to see the crowd tonight,” said LCSC head coach Brandon Rinta. “Hopefully they liked what they saw.”
If a fast paced game with an incredible shooting display and a number of big-time dunks was what the crowd wanted, then they came to the right place.
The Warriors, now 13-0 overall and 1-0 in league play, made 32-of-50 attempts from the floor, 6-of-11 shots from the outside, and added a couple of two-handed jams from point-blank range—via the hands of standout forward P.J. Bolte.
The shooting percentage on the night stands as the fourth best total in program history, and highest since the team shot 65 percent against Walla Walla University in 2008-09. The team’s all-time mark of 69.4 percent was set during the 1991-92 season.
“I give them (his players) credit,” Rinta said. “They just kept moving the ball and trying to get it inside.”
The Warriors succeeded in getting the ball inside and ended up outscoring the Argos 42-18 in the paint. And when they couldn’t get it inside, they’d find someone open on the outside.
Overall, five Warriors scored in double-digits.
Bolte had 20 points, Donte Archie had 14 on 6-of-6 shooting, Nick From had 12, and Jacob Champoux had a double-double of 11 points and 10 assists. The team finished with 22 assists (its second-highest total this season) to 17 turnovers.
“Seventeen turnovers is a little too much. But, yeah, if you take that out of the equation is was a good night.”
The only bad news for LCSC had to do with Tommy Sperry, who was the fifth Warrior to score in double-digits. The Clarkston, Wash., native quickly reached 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting, but left the game just before halftime with what is believed to be a shoulder injury. The injury allegedly occurred when he dove for a loose ball at midcourt during the first half.
“That was the best seven minutes of his college basketball career, and I hate to see that happen to him,” said Rinta. “If I could fix one thing with this team it would be to get rid of these injuries. Yesterday was the first day we had everyone in practice.”
Thankfully for the Warriors they do have some depth, as evidenced by the team’s 36-18 advantage in points off the bench. Spurred by its bench, LCSC used a 21-5 run late in the first half to pull away.
Great Falls, now 8-5 and 0-1, was led by Marcel Towns who had 18 points and four steals. Naren Maynard led the game with 10 rebounds.
The Warriors will be back in action at home again next Saturday when they take on Montana Tech. The game is being billed as Canned Food Night and all fans who donate two cans of food will receive free admission.
