The Colorado College men's basketball team captured a 62-50 victory over Texas Lutheran at Reid Arena Friday night in its Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference opener.
 
Dinari Boykin led the Tigers with 17 points and nine rebounds, while Russell MacFarlane added 10 points as CC improved to 5-3 overall and dropped TLU to 1-9 and 0-3 in the SCAC.
 
Teddy Tapken, who led all scorers with 18 points, made his first four shots from the field and scored eight points early as the Bulldogs jumped out to a 12-5 lead in the first five minutes. He finished the game 8-for-8 from the field.
 
The Tigers clamped down defensively after that, posting an 11-0 run over a span of 9:05 to take an 18-14 lead with 6:37 remaining in the first half. Kevin Dittman and Boykin each had four points and Devin Philio collected three during the run.
 
Both teams struggled from three-point land in the first 20 minutes, with the Tigers going 0-for-11, while TLU was 0-for-7. CC held a 24-19 advantage at the break.
 
Boykin finally hit a three-pointer 1:09 into the second half, then Scott Ruegg and Adrian Price each made a layup to give the Tigers their first double-digit lead at 32-22 with 17:41 left to play. Trey Crawford nailed a long-range shot with 15:02 remaining to give CC its biggest lead at 38-25.
 
MacFarlane was 4-for-4 from the field, including a pair of alley-oop dunks in the second half to keep the Tigers in front for the entirety of the final 20 minutes. Kevin Dittman added five points, six rebounds and three blocks for the Tigers, who had eight blocked shots in the game.
 
The Tigers shot 32.8 percent (19-58) from the field and were 3-for 24 from three-point land. The Bulldogs ended up 1-for-17 from long range and 33.3 percent (19-57) from the field. CC, which committed just 15 turnovers while forcing 19 by the Bulldogs, held a 47-42 advantage on the boards. TLU's Jordan Dunn led all players with 11 rebounds.

"I thought our defense was really good and our guys gave a fantastic effort," head coach Jeff Conarroe said. "Almost every category that we chart defensively was very good, especially our rim protection and defending the 3-point line. And eight blocks is spectacular. We are also continuing to improve on the glass and taking care of the ball. We believe if we do those things and defend the way we are capable, that's our identity. And our identity can carry us through nights where we struggle offensively."
 
Colorado College returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 17, against the Southwestern Pirates at Reid Arena, beginning at 1 p.m.