GREAT FALLS, Mont. - Four Saints scored in double figures, led by Matt Wyman's 24 points in front of his hometown crowd, to lead Carroll to an 86-76 win over the University of Providence Sunday at the McLaughlin Center in Great Falls.
The two teams battled back and forth early, but Ife Kalejaiye buried a baseline three-pointer to give the Saints a 10-7 lead with 16:54 left in the first half and Carroll never trailed again.
The Carroll lead was 35-32 with 4:12 left before going on 7-0 run. The Saints closed the first frame with a 49-38 advantage.
Carroll kept UP at arm's length and extended the lead to 15, but the Argos made a run to cut the lead to 79-72 with 1:33 left, but that is as close as they would come as the Saints closed the 86-76 win.
Wyman's 24 points led all scorers. Match Burnham tallied 18, Ryan Imhoff had 17 and Kalejaiye notched 12.
Carroll was 25-44 (56.8 percent) from the field and 5-12 (41.7 percent) from the three-point line. Carroll was exceptional from the line, hitting 31-34 (91.2 percent).
Both teams tallied 11 assists and 13 turnovers. Providence carried a 31-24 advantage on the glass, but the Saints had five blocks.
Sergio Berkley had 19 points to lead UP, including a 12-12 night from the free-throw line. Steven Daho-Clark scored 13 and Matt Brooks McGregor tallied 11.
The win moves the Saints to 8-0 on the year and 2-0 in Frontier play. The Saints are one of just nine teams that remain unbeaten in NAIA DI and are the only unblemished Frontier team.
"Coming out of that back-to-back road trip with two wins is an impressive accomplishment by the fellas," Head Coach Carson Cunningham said. "Their ability to execute and deliver well-placed passes against the University of Providence's pressure helped us get the win tonight. The Argos played hard. Fortunately, we were able to get it done."
The game was the second of two early-season conference games for the Saints. Carroll's next conference game is scheduled on Jan. 4 at home against Montana Western, but the Saints continue the non-conference slate Friday, Dec. 8, at home against Salish Kootenai College.
