Northern Colorado guard Jordan Davis arrived at the McDermott Center Wednesday night billed as one of the top offensive threats in the Big Sky Conference.
Davis more than lived up to the hype with an all-around performance that lifted the Bears to a 90-64 victory over the Incarnate Word Cardinals.
With a quick first step, the nation’s 10th leading scorer made it tough on the Cardinals all night.
Not only did he produce 20 points on 7 of 12 shooting, he also grabbed five rebounds, passed for five assists and made four steals.
His drive and dunk over UIW’s Augustine Ene with four minutes remaining left a bystander behind the basket aghast, as he exclaimed, “Man, that was sick.”
(See video above).
Another Bears’ guard, Jonah Radebaugh, also hurt UIW with 20 points. Radebaugh nailed 5 of 6 three-point baskets.
Davis, 6-2, from Las Vegas, came in averaging 24.5 points.
“He’s really, really tough, really physical,” UIW coach Carson Cunningham said. “We knew he was a lot to deal with. I think he had 32 (points) on Pepperdine. We felt like he was going to present a major challenge for us. So we’re just going to keep battling.”
Davis seemed to turn up his intensity a few notches near the end of the game.
In a sequence of plays that lasted 71 seconds on clock, he drove down the lane for a layup (see video above), assisted on a layup for teammate Jalen Sanders and then threw down the dunk of the night.
“I definitely enjoy playing this pace, and making plays for my teammates,” Davis told The JB Replay. “I thought my teammates did a wonderful job of spacing the floor with screens and just getting me open.”
Records
Northern Colorado: 3-0
Incarnate Word: 4-4
UIW forward Christian Peevy drives to the basket for a field goal late in the first half Wednesday night.
Shooting a high percentage from the field, Northern Colorado surged into a 49-31 halftime lead.
The Bears opened on a 14-3 run in the first five minutes of the game. After UIW responded with a streak to trim the lead to 19-13, Northern Colorado surged again, scoring 13 of the next 16 points.
After the dust cleared, the Bears held a 32-16 lead. The visiting team didn’t look back, building the advantage to as many as 22 points. Long-distance shooting artist Bodie Hume led the way with 13 points, including three baskets from three-point territory, in the first half.
UIW enjoyed perhaps its best stretch of the game in the first four minutes after intermission. Christian Peevy scored seven points in a 14-3 run for the Cardinals that cut the lead to six points.
Notable
Peevy produced a season-high 26 points on 9 of 12 from the field and 8 of 9 at the free throw line. Guard Augustine Ene was 7 of 11 for 16 points.
Northern Colorado did a good job on two of UIW’s primary offensive weapons. Freshman guard Morgan Taylor was held to eight points on 3 of 11 shooting. Senior Charles Brown III was held scoreless on 0 for 5 from the floor.
UIW’s defense could use some work before its next game, set for Sunday at Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. The Bears shot 55.6 percent from the floor for the third-highest percentage against the Cardinals this year. Previously, the Montana Grizzlies shot 62 percent on UIW. Texas Tech shot 59.6 percent.
Local connection
Johnatan Reyes, a Northern Colorado sophomomre from Clark High School, contributed a rebound and an assist in 11 minutes off the bench. His biggest impact on the game may have been a large gathering of family, friends and supporters from the local area who were wearing ‘Northern Colorado’ shirts and cheering for the Bears.