by United Tribes went 1-1 in a rematch of teams they played the opening weekend. Tribes beat Miles Commuinity College on their home court 82-78 on the opening weekend. This time around the pace was faster and they were able to outlast the Pioneers 109-102. Sam Pendleton had another incredible night passing the ball as he broke his own school record of 19 assistst and finished with 20 assists on the night. The Thunderbirds had three players score at least 20 points. Xavier Norris and Shayden Keplin each knocked down 5 three pointers on their way to 23 and 21 points respectfully. Rob McClain had his fifth double double with 22 points and 15 rebounds. Bear Mosley contributed 12 points and 5 rebounds off the bench.
Going into the Saturday evening matchup a pair of winning steaks was on the line. Nationally ranked and undefeated Gillette College stood at 9-0 and the Thunderbirds came in red hot at 9-1 winners of 8 straight. The back and forth first half saw the lead change multiple times and ended with Gillette going to locker room up 46-43. The score remained close in the second half, but the Thunderbirds eventually wore down and Gillette came out on top by a final score of 105-84. Rob McClain stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, 7 steals, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. Also reaching double figures were Xavier Norris with 13 points and Montel Carlow with 11. Sam Pendleton had 14 points and 8 assists.
The Thunderbirds stand at 9-2 on the year. They play on the road Tuesday at Turtle Mountain and return home for weekend games against Little Big Horn College on Friday night at 7:30 pm and Miles Community College at 2 pm on Saturday afternoon.
