LAKEWOOD, CO- Colorado Christian returned to the CCU Event Center on Thursday night against Regis for their final homestand of the season. The Cougars gave the boisterous crowd plenty to cheer about, playing consistent and unselfish basketball for all 40 minutes en route to an upset victory 78-71 over the Rangers. 

CCU opened the game strong on a 7-0 run as Promise Idiaru hit a layup and Jacob Everson converted a three-point play. The Rangers fought back to claim a 17-13 lead, but Tate Odvody provided the response with a three-point play of his own for an 18-17 lead. Idiaru sent the gym into a frenzy with a little over 10 minutes left in the half as he rolled away from his defender and threw down an emphatic one handed dunk. 

A back and forth battle ensued to close the half as the two teams grappled for an advantage. Regis managed to go up by as much as 9 late in the half, but an Idiaru layup and Nathaniel Law free throw sent CCU to the half down just 34-28. 

The Cougars began to draw closer early in the second half as Bradley Land hit a jumper and Schafer Reichart made a layup to make it a one-point game. Jayson Demcher put in a layup to tie things at 47-47, while back-to-back layups from Law put CCU up 51-49. Lincoln Cantrall then splashed home a huge three-pointer to give his team a five point lead with 10:07 to play. 

The Rangers showed their quality moments later as they came back to take a three point lead, but the Cougars would not be beaten on this night. Land sank a three from well beyond the arc, and Idiaru grabbed an offensive rebound and put in the layup to give his team a four-point lead. Trailing by one, Everson gave CCU the lead for good with a crucial three-pointer, and he followed that up with another three to put the crowd on their feet. In the double bonus down the stretch, the Cougars got to the line frequently and made their chances count, icing an impressive upset victory 78-71 over the Rangers. 

Everson led the offense with 21 points with a trio of three-pointers, while Idiaru notched a double-double on 16 points and a stellar 15 rebounds that included 6 offensive boards. Land poured in 17 points, and Reichart dished out 3 assists. It was a highly entertaining game that saw the score tied 11 times throughout before CCU came away with the victory. 

Colorado Christian will close their season on Senior Day at home on March 1 against MSU Denver at 3 p.m. MST.