Temps help in Toros’ victory

CEDAR PARK — Aided by two members of the San Antonio Spurs, the Austin Toros jumped out to an early lead and never lost it Sunday as they rolled over the Idaho Stampede 97-82 for their second straight victory.

Nando De Colo was assigned to the Toros (2-2) by the Spurs on Sunday and played 38 minutes in the game. He finished with 14 points. Cory Joseph, also sent to Austin by San Antonio, chipped in with 15 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

“Yesterday they told me to come down here just to play, take some shots and find some wisdom,” De Colo said. “It’s OK. We have two days off, so it’s just to play a little bit.”

De Colo said the Spurs told him he will rejoin the team at practice Monday.

Idaho (0-4) trailed by 15 in the first half but cut the margin to 50-46 at halftime. Austin then came out and dominated the third quarter to keep a comfortable margin.

“I thought Rick Jackson played really well tonight,” coach Taylor Stevens said. “His impact around the rim and in the paint was big. He’s really coming along, and bigs that get double-doubles in this league really stand out.”

Jackson shot a perfect 9 for 9 from the field and finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds. He was able to find space inside all game and had several dunks.

“I think we did a good job as far as pick and roll and getting to the basket,” Jackson said. “I was able to get into the lane and get my layups, and once we started helping each other, good things happened.”

The Stampede cut the lead to eight with three minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Toros then came out of a timeout with Joseph finding Jackson inside for a dunk, and they extended the lead from there.

Idaho’s Sean Evans led all scorers with 26 points to go with nine rebounds.

The Toros and Stampede will play twice more in Boise, Idaho, on Friday and Saturday.