OAKLAND, Calif. Micah Nyamuzuwe had 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Nick Taubes hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in the fourth quarter as Head-Royce rallied past Piedmont 70-68 on Tuesday. The Jayhawks (2-1) made 13 3-pointers and forced 18 turnovers to come back from a 9-point deficit in a game with nine lead changes and seven ties.
Piedmont scored the first four points. Nyamuzuwe and Lamarr Covington answered with baskets, both assisted by Mikael Akpala, and a Nyamuzuwe 3-pointer gave Head-Royce a 7-6 lead. Piedmont then scored nine straight points to go up 15-7 and twice led by nine, at 18-9 and 21-12. Nyamuzuwe kept the Jayhawks close with two 3-pointers and a basket off a turnover, and Head-Royce trailed 29-23 at halftime.
Nyamuzuwe opened the second half with a 3-pointer off a turnover, but Piedmont pushed its lead to 34-26. The Jayhawks answered with a 9-0 run. Bryce Clepper hit a 3-pointer, freshman Sanjay Ernst followed with another off a turnover, and sophomore Jack Peay scored the next three points to put Head-Royce in front 35-34. Piedmont went on an 8-0 run for a 44-37 lead, but back-to-back 3-pointers from Nyamuzuwe and Clepper finished a 6-0 run that tied the game at 47. A basket off a turnover by freshman Alex Jones made it 52-51, and a second-chance 3-pointer by Ernst began the stretch that produced Head-Royce's biggest lead, 60-55. Piedmont made four straight free throws, and the game was tied 61-61 after three quarters.
Piedmont took a 65-62 lead in the fourth quarter. Jones tied the game at 65 with a 3-pointer on a pass from Clepper. After Piedmont went back ahead 67-65, Taubes hit a 3-pointer on a pass from Nyamuzuwe to make it 68-67, the last lead change of the game. Clepper made a free throw, Piedmont made one of its own, and a free throw by Nyamuzuwe set the final score.
Nyamuzuwe shot 10 of 22 from the field, including 5 of 11 from 3-point range, and had four assists and no turnovers. Clepper finished with 12 points, five assists and five rebounds. Covington had six points, five rebounds, two steals and a block, and Peay grabbed eight rebounds to go with four points. Akpala had three assists. The bench scored 20 points: Ernst had nine on 3-of-5 shooting from 3-point range, Jones had eight and Taubes had three.
Head-Royce shot 37.5 percent (24 of 64) but outscored Piedmont 39-9 on 3-pointers, going 13 of 37 while Piedmont went 3 of 15. The Jayhawks scored 16 points off Piedmont's 18 turnovers, and Piedmont scored 10 off Head-Royce's 13. Piedmont shot 44 percent from the field, made 21 of 30 free throws to Head-Royce's 9 of 19 and outrebounded the Jayhawks 37-34.
With the win, Head-Royce improved to 2-1 this season.