Jordan Cain scored 16 points as four Tritons scored in double-figures to lead the Tritons to an 81-58 victory over Iowa Lakes in the quarterfinal round of the Region 11 Tournament on Saturday (3/1) at Hodges Fieldhouse.
The victory was the seventh consecutive for the Tritons and comes after falling to Iowa Lakes twice in the regular season by a combined five points. Iowa Lakes scored 81 and 75 in the two previous meetings before being held to 58 by the Tritons on Saturday.
"22 points in the second half is a heck of a total to hold them to. They play a style of basketball that demands 40 minutes of attention," said Triton Head Coach, Ryan Kirsch on the Tritons defensive effort. "We really executed well and put pressure on their guards. That's the best 40 minutes of defense we've played the entire season. That's as good as we've been defensively."
Up only seven at the end of a back and forth first half, the Tritons came out shooting and quickly stretched the lead to 13 behind two big 3-point shots from Jalen Wynter and Aleix Sempere Serrano in the first two minutes of the second half. The Lakers would get no closer and the Tritons would lead by as many as 25 points before securing the victory.
"We did a good job battling today. We had contributions from top to bottom offensively," said Kirsch. "We were 6-11 from three in the second half with six different players making 3-pointers. That, along with our defensive effort, broke it open for us."
Along with Cain's 16 points, he had three rebounds and three steals. His three steals leaves him just one shy of the Tritons' season single record of 66 held by Yusef Gray. Irakli Akhalaia added 11 points and 4 rebounds for the Tritons and Lane Campbell and Daviyon Gaston both added 10 points and three assists.
"We can be tough to beat when we play like that. Especially in Hodges Fieldhouse. What an unbelievable environment for our guys to play in," said Kirsch. "We want to thank our administration and Student Activities Office for putting things together that bring people to our games. Our student section, the Triton Pep Band, Triton Cheer, and our Triton fans – they were all incredible. It's a special thing when everyone is supporting everyone."
The win advances the Tritons to the semifinal round and a matchup with #4 and top-seeded DMACC in Boone, IA on Wednesday (3/5) night. Tip is set for 7:00 PM.
Statistical Leaders vs. Iowa Lakes -
Points – Jordan Cain (16), Irakli Akhalaia (11), Lane Campbell (10), Daviyon Gaston (10)
Rebounds – Vice Grbic (6), Aleix Sempere Serrano (5), Irakli Akhalaia (4), Jordan Cain (3)
Assists – CJ Mitchell (4), Lane Campbell (3), Daviyon Gaston (3), Three Tritons tied with two.
Steals – Terrius Walker (4), Jordan Cain (3), Irakli Akhalaia (3), Daviyon Gaston (2)