The Lowdown: (RV) Friends University vs. No. 1 College of Idaho

* NAIA Second Round

Location: Caldwell, Idaho

When: Saturday, Mar. 15 @ 8 pm (CST)

Broadcast ($10)

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Flying with the Falcons: The (RV) Friends University Falcons, the No. 8 seed in the Naismith Quadrant, pulled out a gritty 63-60 victory over the No. 9 seeded Florida Memorial University Lions last night for their first NAIA postseason victory in 11 years. Read the main takeaways from the Falcons' exciting victory over the Lions HERE!

The KCAC Co-Player of the Year, KJ Spiller leads the Falcons in scoring (16.4 ppg) and is second on the team in rebounding (5.8 rpg) this season. Cahlese Lee (12.6 ppg), Randy Woolf, Jr. (10.8 ppg) and Ring Deng (10.4 ppg) are also scoring in double-figures to give the Falcons a balanced offensive attack.

Woolf, Jr. is tops on the Falcons and tied for fourth in the KCAC with 3.9 assists per game, with Deng recording a team-leading 6.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game.  Lee has given the Falcons a viable threat from beyond the arc, leading the team in three-point percentage (42.6).

Scouting the Yotes: The No. 1-ranked and top-seeded College of Idaho Yotes are now 30-2 overall on the season following last night's 59-46 win over No. 16 seed UC Merced (Calif.). The Yotes finished 21-1 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference and have won 20 straight games overall.

Johnny Radford leads College of Idaho in scoring at 14.3 ppg, followed by Drew Wyman (12.3 ppg) and Samaje Morgan (11.0 ppg). Morgan is also first on the team in assists (4.5 apg) and Straton Rogers leads the Yotes in rebounding (8.2 rpg).

The Series: This will be the first meeting on record between the Falcons and Yotes.   

Top of the League: The Falcons' most wins in six years resulted in elite recognition within the KCAC, highlighted by head coach Phil McClintock being named the KCAC Coach of the Year and KJ Spiller selected as KCAC Co-Player of the Year. Randy Woolf, Jr., Cahlese Lee and Ring Deng also earned all-conference recognition. Read the full release HERE!

Strength vs. Strength: The Yotes are the nation's second-best defensive team in field-goal percentage, holding opponents to just a 38 percent shooting clip. Conversely, the Falcons are the KCAC's top shooting team at 49.7 percent and lead the league in scoring at 83.3 points per game. The Yotes have allowed 83 points only twice this season, giving up 88 points in two wins vs. Multnomah.

Road Warriors: The Falcons are 11-2 on the road this season. They'll need to be at their road best tonight, as College of Idaho has won 19 of 20 home games this year.

Breakthrough Under 70: Last night's 63-60 victory over Florida Memorial University was the first time all season the Falcons won when failing to score at least 70 points.

80 is a Serious Number: When the Falcons reach at least the 80-point mark, they've won all 15 games, compared to a 9-7 mark when failing to score at least 80. On the other end, the Falcons are 20-3 when holding the opposition below 80 points but have split eight games that the opposing team gets at least 80 points.

Glass House: The Falcons have won all 19 games when leading in rebounding but are just 5-7 when the opposition controls the boards, including last night's win that saw the Falcons pull out the win over the Lions despite trailing 46-35 in rebounds.

Half Good: When taking a lead into the locker room this season, the Falcons have won 17 of 18 games. But they're 5-5 when trailing at the break and 2-1 in games that were tied at the half.

Straight Shooters: The Falcons are 21-3 when outshooting the opposition from the field but are 3-4 when the opposing team records a higher field-goal percentage.

SCHEELS: We are proud to have Scheels as a sponsor of Friends University Athletics this season!  Click HERE for more info on the Scheels store in Wichita.

Kansas Army National Guard: We are thrilled to have the Kansas Army National Guard on board with us this year as an official sponsor! Click HERE to visit their website.

Falcons by the Numbers: 

Overall record: 24-7

KCAC: 18-4 

Home: 10-5

Road: 11-2

Neutral: 3-0 

When scoring:                                              

Under 50 points: 0-0 

50-59 points: 0-2 

60-69 points: 1-2

70-79 points: 8-3 

80-89 points: 8-0 

90+ points: 7-0 

When allowing: 

Under 50 points: 

50-59 points: 3-0 

60-69 points: 8-1

70-79 points: 9-2 

80-89 points: 4-4

90+ points: 0-0 

When leading at halftime: 17-1 

When trailing at halftime: 5-5

When tied at halftime: 2-1 

When committing fewer turnovers: 12-3

When committing more turnovers: 10-4

When turnovers are tied: 2-0 

When leading in field-goal percentage: 21-3

When trailing in field-goal percentage: 3-4

When field-goal percentage is tied: 0-0 

When leading in three-point percentage: 17-1

When trailing in three-point percentage: 7-5

When three-point percentage is tied: 0-1

When leading in rebounding: 19-0 

When trailing in rebounding: 5-7 

When rebounding is tied: 0-0 

When leading in assists: 18-1 

When trailing in assists: 5-6

When assists are tied: 1-0 

In OT: 0-0 

The Coaches: 

Phil McClintock is in his second season as head coach of the Friends University men's basketball program and has already transformed the Falcons into a national contender.  

McClintock brought a stark familiarity of the KCAC to Friends, highlighted by an eight-year tenure as Associate Men's Basketball Head Coach at Ottawa University. 

At Ottawa, McClintock served as the recruiting coordinator and was responsible for film breakdown and scouting reports. 

2019-20 was a breakout season, as McClintock brought in six of the team's top 10 players that produced a school-record 28 victories, a regular season KCAC championship and an NAIA Sweet 16 appearance (tournament ended early due to COVID-19). 

In addition to his basketball coaching experience at Ottawa, McClintock has also been the Braves Men's and Women's Golf head coach for the past four seasons. 

McClintock's first basketball head coaching position came at Salem high school, where he spent three seasons and guided the team in the 2014-15 campaign to their first winning record in eight years. 

A strong developer of young players, McClintock has served as a Camp Coach at the KU Bill Self Basketball Camps every year since 2012. His responsibilities at the camp include running drills, coaching teams and developing player skills. 

His first career coaching job was a two-year tenure as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at William Woods University from 2010-12. 

McClintock also played collegiately at Ottawa and enjoyed immense success, earning two NAIA All-America honors, a pair of All-KCAC nods while finishing his career as the all-time leader in blocked shots and top five all-time in scoring, rebounding and steals.

An Ottawa University Hall of Fame inductee in 2021, he helped the Braves to two conference titles and a pair of NAIA Sweet 16 berths. 

A 2009 graduate of Ottawa University in Physical Education and Health, McClintock then earned his Master of Education in Athletics/Activities Administration from William Woods University in 2012. 

McClintock and his wife Kirsten have three boys, Lawson (15), Jackson (11), and Bodie (three).  

Colby Blaine is in his seventh season as head coach of the College of Idaho Yotes and reached 200 career wins in last night's NAIA First Round win over UC Merced. Blaine has guided the Yotes to at least 30 wins in all seven seasons at the helm.

Before taking the reins as head coach, Blaine was an assistant coach at College of Idaho and then an associate head coach. Overall, Blaine has led the team to an NAIA National Championship in the 2022-23 season, an NAIA Fab Four appearance last season and now six Cascade Collegiate Conference championships.

Familiar to the region, Blaine served five seasons as an assistant coach at College of Southern Idaho prior to arriving at College of Idaho.

Up Next: With a victory over College of Idaho, the Falcons would advance to the NAIA Round of 16 against the winner of fourth-seeded Langston University and fifth-seeded Central Baptist College of the Naismith Quadrant. Round of 16 games are set for Mar. 20-21 in Kansas City, Mo.