Griz top Eastern Washington, advance to title game
3/7/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior guard Kevin Criswell scored a team-high 25 points to lead The University of Montana men??s basketball team to a 73-71 overtime win over No. 3 Eastern Washington Tuesday night in the semifinal of the Big Sky Men??s Basketball Championship in Flagstaff, Ariz. UM (22-6) squares off against host team Northern Arizona (21-9), 98-83 victors over Sacramento State in the other semifinal. The championship game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (MST) and will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
The Eagles end their season at 15-15 overall.
Criswell made four clutch free throws to close the overtime and help the Grizzlies advance to the title game for the second straight year. With UM up 69-66 with 23 seconds remaining in the overtime, Criswell went to the line and buried a pair of free throws to give the Griz a five-point lead.
After a made 3-pointer by EWU??s Matt Penoncello with seven seconds remaining, Criswell was fouled again and iced the game by making both attempts, giving Montana a 73-69 advantage.
EWU??s Deuce Smith made a jumper with one second left to pull within two, making the final score of 73-71.
Criswell led the Griz offensively shooting 6-of-13 from the field and 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Sophomore forward Andrew Strait played a team-high 42 minutes and chipped in with 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Senior guard Virgil Matthews and junior swingman Matt Dlouhy added 11 points apiece.
Rodney Stuckey, the 2006 Big Sky Conference MVP and Freshman of the Year, tallied a game-high 26 points on 10-of-23 shooting. Stuckey had five rebounds and five assists but tallied a team-high six turnovers in 42 minutes of play. Penoncello had 12 points and Paul Butorac added 10 points to make up the three Eagles which scored in double figures.
Eastern Washington jumped out to the early lead and maintained the advantage through the first 15 minutes of the game. The Eagles led by as many as seven points on three separate occasions in the first stanza, with the last an 18-11 lead with 11:57 in the half.
The Grizzlies closed the gap with a 16-6 run over the next seven minutes to take a 27-24 lead, capped by a Dlouhy 3-pointer with 4:04 left in the half.
Sophomore guard Matt Martin nailed a pair of 3-pointers over the final four minutes to help the Griz take a 36-28 lead into the locker room at the half.
Montana led for almost the entire second half, with its largest lead 14 points at the 17 minute mark. A Criswell jumper gave the Griz that 44-30 advantage early in the second half.
Another Dlouhy 3-pointer put the Griz up 53-40 with 10 minutes remaining, but the Eagles mounted a comeback on the back of a 19-6 run to close the game and tie it up in regulation.
In the final moments at the end of regulation, the Grizzlies led by two points with the ball. A Criswell turnover with 23 seconds to play led to a fast break for Stuckey. Senior guard Virgil Matthews tracked down the Eagles?? freshman sensation and committed an intentional foul as he attempted the layup.
Stuckey made both free throws and EWU was issued the ball because of the intentional foul. After running down the final 20 seconds for the final shot, Stuckey missed a contested jumper with one tick on the clock which sent the game into overtime.
Montana shot 40.3 percent (25-of-62) from the field as a team, 36.4 percent (8-of-22) on 3-pointers. The Grizzlies made 15-of-17 free throws, including a 6-of-7 performance from the charity stripe in the overtime.
UM out-rebounded the Eagles, 38-36, and had 10 steals to the Eagles?? five. The Griz had a 23-14 advantage in points off turnovers, forcing EWU to commit 16 while the Griz recorded just 12. Each team recorded 18 assists in the semifinal math-up.
Eastern Washington shot 46.6 percent (27-of-58) on field goals, but shot only 27.8 percent from behind the 3-point arc. EWU made 12-of-17 free throws (70.6 percent).
The Eagles end their season at 15-15 overall.
Criswell made four clutch free throws to close the overtime and help the Grizzlies advance to the title game for the second straight year. With UM up 69-66 with 23 seconds remaining in the overtime, Criswell went to the line and buried a pair of free throws to give the Griz a five-point lead.
After a made 3-pointer by EWU??s Matt Penoncello with seven seconds remaining, Criswell was fouled again and iced the game by making both attempts, giving Montana a 73-69 advantage.
EWU??s Deuce Smith made a jumper with one second left to pull within two, making the final score of 73-71.
Criswell led the Griz offensively shooting 6-of-13 from the field and 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Sophomore forward Andrew Strait played a team-high 42 minutes and chipped in with 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Senior guard Virgil Matthews and junior swingman Matt Dlouhy added 11 points apiece.
Rodney Stuckey, the 2006 Big Sky Conference MVP and Freshman of the Year, tallied a game-high 26 points on 10-of-23 shooting. Stuckey had five rebounds and five assists but tallied a team-high six turnovers in 42 minutes of play. Penoncello had 12 points and Paul Butorac added 10 points to make up the three Eagles which scored in double figures.
Eastern Washington jumped out to the early lead and maintained the advantage through the first 15 minutes of the game. The Eagles led by as many as seven points on three separate occasions in the first stanza, with the last an 18-11 lead with 11:57 in the half.
The Grizzlies closed the gap with a 16-6 run over the next seven minutes to take a 27-24 lead, capped by a Dlouhy 3-pointer with 4:04 left in the half.
Sophomore guard Matt Martin nailed a pair of 3-pointers over the final four minutes to help the Griz take a 36-28 lead into the locker room at the half.
Montana led for almost the entire second half, with its largest lead 14 points at the 17 minute mark. A Criswell jumper gave the Griz that 44-30 advantage early in the second half.
Another Dlouhy 3-pointer put the Griz up 53-40 with 10 minutes remaining, but the Eagles mounted a comeback on the back of a 19-6 run to close the game and tie it up in regulation.
In the final moments at the end of regulation, the Grizzlies led by two points with the ball. A Criswell turnover with 23 seconds to play led to a fast break for Stuckey. Senior guard Virgil Matthews tracked down the Eagles?? freshman sensation and committed an intentional foul as he attempted the layup.
Stuckey made both free throws and EWU was issued the ball because of the intentional foul. After running down the final 20 seconds for the final shot, Stuckey missed a contested jumper with one tick on the clock which sent the game into overtime.
Montana shot 40.3 percent (25-of-62) from the field as a team, 36.4 percent (8-of-22) on 3-pointers. The Grizzlies made 15-of-17 free throws, including a 6-of-7 performance from the charity stripe in the overtime.
UM out-rebounded the Eagles, 38-36, and had 10 steals to the Eagles?? five. The Griz had a 23-14 advantage in points off turnovers, forcing EWU to commit 16 while the Griz recorded just 12. Each team recorded 18 assists in the semifinal math-up.
Eastern Washington shot 46.6 percent (27-of-58) on field goals, but shot only 27.8 percent from behind the 3-point arc. EWU made 12-of-17 free throws (70.6 percent).
2006 Griz Basketball Flashback: NCAA Tournament Win Over Nevada
Monday, March 30
Name As Many 90's NBA Players: Griz Basketball
Monday, March 30
Dairy Challenge: Griz Basketball
Monday, March 30
Name As Many Dinosaurs: Griz Basketball
Monday, March 30
