CALDWELL, Idaho.  – The No. 8 seed Bushnell men's basketball team brought a blowout to within single digits in the second half, but The College of Idaho pulled away to secure a 88-61 victory in the quarterfinal round of the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament presented by U.S. Bank.  
 
Trailing by 21 points early in the second half, the Beacons put together a strong rally, at one point out-scoring the Yotes 10-2 over a two-minute stretch as they pulled to within 56-48 with 13:15 remaining.
 
The College of Idaho, however, closed on a 32-13 run to put Bushnell away.
 
"It is always tough when you lose your last game of the season," said Head Coach Eddie Alexander. "I am proud of the commitment of this team and of their hard work. We have a lot to grow from and around moving into next season."
 
Bushnell was led on Tuesday by Squeeky Johnson, scoring a game-high 15 points on 5-for-9 shooting from three-point range. Kaleb Burnett added 13 points and Cory Johnson finished off his season with 12 points points and six rebounds.
 
Luke Smith ended his season with just a two-point night, but finishes a four-year career with 955 points and the second-most three-pointers (163) in school history. He also tied the Bushnell career record for free-throw percentage, hitting over 86% this season to bring his career total to 84.9%. He matches a record set by Jordan Humphreys from 2005-2007.
 
Coach Alexander said, "I would like to thank all of our seniors for everything they have committed to this program and our university. They have represented us well."
 
The Yotes, who dominated in the paint with a 54-22 scoring advantage and 51-32 rebounding edge, were led by Samaje Morgan and Drew Wyman, scoring 14 points apiece.
 
"Tonight was a tough night against a very tough College of Idaho squad," said Alexander. "They are ranked number three in the country for a reason. We fought hard to get back to within eight in the second half. Unfortunately, we just did not have enough to finish strong."
 
For the Beacons, the season comes to a close with a 13-16 record. The College of Idaho (27-2) advance to the Cascade Conference semifinals on Friday night, where they will play host to No. 4-seed Southern Oregon University.