Box Score Sophomore guard Eric Houska came through in the clutch as Colorado College defeated Howard Payne University, 80-74, on Friday night in the Rocky Mountain Thanksgiving Classic at Reid Arena.

Houska gave the Tigers a 76-74 lead when he buried a three-pointer from the right wing with one minute to play. On the ensuing possession at the other end of the court, he drew a charge 27 seconds later that led to a pair of free throws by senior guard Justin Berardino.

Sophomore forward Andrew Maddock capped his career scoring night with a blocked shot with seven seconds to go, and senior forward James Lonergan sealed the victory with a pair of free throws two seconds later.

Maddock made 11 of 13 shots from the floor en route to a career-high 25 points. 

CC led 64-53 when Berardino connected from long distance with 8:27 to play, but HPU rallied behind the long-range shooting of sophomore guard Khyce Randall and drives to the rim by 5-foot-8 senior guard Volney Willis.   

The Tigers regained the lead with 3:38 remaining when Maddock was hacked in the act and finished off the old-fashioned three-point.

Howard Payne took a 67-66 lead when sophomore guard Rickey Gillory ran over Berardino and sank an extra one from the charity stripe with 4:41 to go. Then the Yellow Jackets took their final lead at 74-73 when Randall made a pair of free throws with 1:18 to play. 

Houska finished with 13 points and five assists. Senior swingman Luke Winfield added 11 points, while Lonergan added 10 points and eight rebounds.

Randall paced Howard Payne with 19 points, while Willis finished with 16.

In the first game of the evening session, Whitworth University pulled away for a 69-56 victory over Hamline University.

Colorado College plays host to Whitworth University on Saturday at 7 p.m. Hamline takes on Howard Payne at 5 p.m.