HONOLULU -- Two nights after putting on an offensive show that Hawaii's Stan Sheriff Center had never seen before, Northern Colorado basketball showed it can play a little defense, too, against Southern Utah.
The Bears forced the Thunderbirds into 31 turnovers Sunday night and sticky-fingered their way to 14 steals in cruising to a 73-51 victory on the second day of the 2009 Outrigger Hotels Hawaii Rainbow Classic.
Northern Colorado set an arena record with 53 points in the first half of its victory against McNeese State on Friday, but Sunday night's victory might have been even more impressive for Tad Boyle's program. The Bears hit just five three-pointers in the victory and were outrebounded by Southern Utah 35-27 but still earned a 20-plus point victory for the second straight game.
Leading that defensive charge was senior Yahosh Bonner, who had five steals in the game (he's got eight through the Bears' first two contests), seven points and four assists. His relentless approach and vocalism on defense is well-known to Northern Colorado fans, but his tenacity has been somewhat the talk of this historical tournament.
"I'm really, really proud of my guys tonight," Boyle said. "We've played pretty high-level basketball during these first two games, and that's definitely something that has us as coaches excited. We're sticking to our principals and imposing our will a little bit.
"It all starts on defense, and it all starts with Yahosh. He's one of the best defensive players I've ever coached. He never backs down, never loses his energy and that all seems to rub off on the other players. We've played with a ton of energy through these first two games, and Yahosh is a big reason for that."
Northern Colorado (2-0) has now started a season perfect after two games for the first time since 2000 and second time since 1984. The Bears also move to Monday night's national-television (2 a.m. MT/ESPN) game against Hawaii with a chance to claim a tournament title in an event previously won by storied programs like Indiana (1974), North Carolina (1982), Michigan (1992) and Louisville (1993).
More than half of the Bears' 73 points (37) against the Thunderbirds on Sunday night came via the turnover, and that, maybe more than anything else, really tells the story of how effective Northern Colorado's defensive pressure was in this one.
The Bears jumped out to a 7-2 lead by the first media break and never trailed in the contest. Their game against McNeese State on Friday gave them a chance to showcase their offensive efficiency. This game gave them a chance to flex their muscle.
And both games ended in big wins.
Senior Will Figures led all scorers with 20 points before he fouled out with 2:51 left in the game, and he also added two assists and three rebounds.
Freshman Hauns Brereton, who has family ties here in the islands and hosted the Bears and their travel party with a beachside picnic on Saturday afternoon, provided a huge lift off the bench with 13 points on perfect shooting (4-4 from the field, 5-5 on free throws).
Freshman Elliott Lloyd set a career high with 10 points and junior Devon Beitzel was solid, also with 10.
"We've definitely got some depth to work with," Boyle said. "There's a lot of season left to play, but I've really been pleased and impressed with the kinds of performances we're getting. It was Chris (Kaba) and Neal (Kingman) on Friday, but tonight, other guys stepped up and provided that boost. We're going to need that on down the line."
Northern Colorado led just 13-9 at the 10:58 mark, and at that point, it seemed like Southern Utah was going to be able to insert its deliberate pace into the game and slow the Bears offense, which was so strong in their preseason blowout against Western State and impressive win against the Cowboys on Friday.
Northern Colorado finished the half on a 27-13 run, though, to go into the break up 40-22 and establish itself heading into the second half.
