Santa Clara, Calif. -- After kickstarting the 2020-21 season with an offensive explosion Wednesday evening against UC Davis, the Nicholls State University men's basketball program (2-0, 0-0 SLC) followed up with a defensive lockdown in an impressive victory over Idaho State (0-2, 0-0 Big Sky), leveling the Bengals in game two of the Bronco Invitational by a 70-51 margin Friday evening at the Leavey Center.

The Red & Gray defense shined all throughout the contest as consistent pressure resulted in a season-high 28 turnovers for Idaho State, allowing for 36 points on the other end for the Colonels off said giveaways. Once again, senior Kevin Johnson set the tone defensively behind six steals -- good for a tie of his career-high -- while the remainder of the club tallied seven collectively, leading to a significant 13-to-1 margin between Nicholls and Idaho State for the category.

On the scoreboard, redshirt junior Ty Gordon put in another team-best as he posted his second double-digit performance in just two games donning the Red & Gray, dropping a game-high 16 points in the win. Fellow redshirt junior Najee Garvin rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points while seniors Kevin Johnson and Ryghe Lyons each added nine apiece.

KEY STORYLINES & STATISTICS
-- For the game, Nicholls finished shooting 46.4 percent (26-of-56) from the field, 50.0 percent (7-of-14) from beyond the arc and 61.1 percent (11-of-18) at the free throw line.
-- With the victory, the Colonels improve to 2-0 for the first time since the 1994-95 season, where the Red & Gray started things off with wins over Louisiana Tech (90-85) and Louisiana Christian (103-61).
-- Nicholls saw one more collegiate debut against Idaho State, as freshman G Quinn Strander grabbed some playing time near the end of regulation. Sophomore Tyrease Terrell also earned his first minutes of the season late in the game as well.
-- In addition to his nine points and six steals, Kevin Johnson also dished out six assists, good for just over half of the Colonels' 11 on the night.
-- Notably, redshirt senior Damien Sears put in a solid effort in just his second game with the program, pulling down a team-best six boards and adding on eight points.

UP NEXT
The Red & Gray turn their attention to the Bronco Invitational finale against host and fellow undefeated Santa Clara, battling the Broncos on Saturday, Nov. 28 at 6 p.m. CT.

STAY SOCIAL
For more information on Colonels Men's Basketball, follow the team on Twitter (@Nicholls_MBB), Instagram (@geauxcolonels) and like their Facebook page (Nicholls Athletics).