TRENTON, Mo. - After opening the season with a wire-to-wire win over Peru State College, Highland (2-0) showed up big against no. 8 North Central Missouri College, pulling away in the second half for an 86-82 win. Colton Knoll led all players with 27 points and 14 rebounds on the night, with three other Scotties joining him in double figures.

The teams traded the lead back and forth for the first several minutes of the contest before a triple by Knoll followed by a pair of free throws after drawing foul put Highland in front 14-10. Knoll continued to extend the lead for the Scotties sandwiching a pair of defensive rebounds between a 15-foot jumper, a triple off an assist from Adriel Smith and a layup to put Highland up 23-13 with 12:48 to play.

North Central was eventually able to claw back into the lead, with a three-pointer by Camden Brown giving the Pirates a 32-30 lead with just over five minutes left in the half. Knoll answered with another layup and the teams see-sawed back and forth down the stretch.

Conner Lockhart delivered a halftime lead for the Scotties, knocking down a three-pointer with nine seconds left.

The Pirates struck first after intermission, with Deng Gak nailing a triple on NCMC's first possession, continuing the tug-of-war that had closed out the first 20 minutes. It took the Pirates more than 10 minutes, however, to muster their first two-possession lead of the contest, as Gak found an open Talan Holt for a three-pointer to give the top-10 squad a 62-56 lead with 8:59 on the clock.

A mistake by Gak opened the door for the Scotties, as the Pirate forward turned the ball over with just over seven minutes on the clock. Lockhart pulled Highland within two with a layup and followed it up with a huge block on the opposite end for the Scotties. Following a missed second-chance three by Gak, NCMC's James Porter III turned the ball over after securing the rebound, with Tavian Tate making the Pirates pay with a layup to tie the game at 66-66

Highland extended its lead as far as eight points down the stretch as Tate drew a foul shooting a three-pointer and converted all three attempts from the stripe to put HCC up 82-74 with 48 seconds left.

Despite a single turnover down the stretch, the Scotties never allowed North Central closer than three points, with Smith icing the win with a free thrown with five seconds on the clock.

The Scotties posted a solid shooting effort on the night, hitting 46.2 percent (30-65) from the floor and 69.6 percent (16-23) from the free throw line.

Highland continues its five-game season-opening road swing with a pair of contests in the JCCC Classic. The Scotties take on Southwestern Community College at 3 p.m.