CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Coe trailed 48-30 at half, but scored the 13th most points in a half in the second half to rally for an 88-87 victory over Rockford. The Regents opened the game on a 23-4 run in the first 6:18.
Trailing by 19 with 12:29 to play in the first half, Coe used an 8-2 run in 2:47 to cut the lead to 13 with 9:13 to play. Rockford increased the lead back to 15 with 5:54 to play in the opening half before Coe went on a 7-1 run in less than a minute to cut the lead to nine with 4:44 to play in the half. The Regents held Coe without a field goal in the final 1:24 of the first half, as they ended the final 3:55 of the opening half on a 16-7 run, including a 3-pointer from Dominique Walker at the buzzer, taking a 48-30 lead at the break.
Rockford connected on 8-of-14 3-point attempts in the first half, while the Kohawks were just 1-of-8 from downtown. Overall, the Regents were 19-of-34 (55.9%) in the opening half, while Coe was just 8-of-24 (33.3%). The Kohawks turned the ball over 12 times in the opening frame, with Rockford scoring 20 points off turnovers.
The second half was nearly an exact opposite of the first half for both teams. Coe opened the half on a 21-4 run over the first 5:01, as sophomore Andrew Wirth (Cedar Falls, Iowa/Cedar Falls) connected on three 3-pointers and junior David Mataloni(Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale) knocked down a pair from downtown in Coe's run. As Coe cut the lead to one with 14:09 to play on a back-to-back trey's by Wirth, the Regents went on a 7-2 run in less than two minutes to put the lead back to six with 11:38 to play.
With 6:05 to play, the Kohawks took their first lead of the game on a pair of free throws by junior Seth Light (Carlisle, Iowa/Carlisle) at 68-67. Tory Minnifield hit a 3-pointer for the Regents with 2:23 remaining, as they took a 76-74 lead. Mataloni hit a pair of free throws with 2:03 to play to tie the game before hitting his third trey of the game with 1:27 to play. Light added a free throw with :42 remaining to take a four-point lead. Junior Garrett Cross (Spring Grove, Minn./Spring Grove) added two free throws with :32 left to give Coe a five-point lead, its largest of the game.
A 3-pointer by Grant Olsen with :09 left cut Coe's lead to one. Wirth knocked down his fifth and sixth free throws with :06 to play to give Coe a 3-point lead. Wirth was perfect on all six free throw attempts, tying a career-high, in the final :24. Rockford's Paul Hall missed a 3-point attempt with :02 to play before Darryl Watkins jumper was good at the buzzer.
In the second half, Coe was 8-of-13 (61.5%) from 3-point range, while the Regents were 4-of-13 (30.8%). Coe shot 15-of-25 (60%) from the field in the final frame, while Rockford was 13-of-34 (38.2%). The Kohawks held a huge advantage at the charity stripe, connecting on 33-of-40 (82.5%) attempts while the Regents were just 11-of-16 (68.8%).
Light led the Kohawks with his second double-double in the last three games. He finished with a career-high in both points (26) and rebounds (16). He tallied 12 points and 10 rebounds in the second half alone. He also hit a career-high 12-of-16 free throw attempts. Mataloni, Wirth and senior Kevin Gaster (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson) joined Light in double figures. Mataloni had 19 points, while Wirth and Gaster added 15 and 11 points respectively. Danny Fair and Minnifield led the Regents with 19 and 18 points respectively, as six of their nine players that saw action scored in double figures. The other three players combined for one point.
Mataloni and Gaster led the Kohawks with three assists while Wirth added two. Cross had a game-high two steals. Light's 16 rebounds were the 16th most in school history. Coe's 58 points in the second half were the 12th most in school history.
The Kohawks will have a week off for the Christmas holiday before returning to action Dec. 30 when Coe will host crosstown rival Mount Mercy at 7 p.m.