Griz knock off Vikings in crucial league game
1/29/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior forward Kyle Sharp and junior guard Anthony Johnson scored 15 points each to lead The University of Montana Grizzlies to a 72-65 Big Sky Conference victory over the visiting Portland State Vikings Thursday evening in front of 4,316 fans in UM???s Dahlberg Arena.
The win by Montana (6-3 Big Sky/12-9 overall) snapped a four-game winning streak by PSU (6-2/15-6) over the Grizzlies. It was an intense game, with 10 lead changes and six ties. The score was knotted up for the sixth and final time, 64-64 with 2:08 left to play when junior guard Dominic Waters made one of two free throws. But on their next possession, the Grizzlies took a 67-64 advantage on a three-pointer by Johnson with 1:40 remaining, and Montana led the rest of the way. Montana took a 71-64 lead with 30 seconds to go on four straight free throws, two by senior guard Ceylon Elgin-Taylor and a pair by Johnson. The Vikings biggest lead of the game was eight points, when they went up 34-26 on a three-pointer by senior guard Andre Murray with 1:36 left until intermission. PSU led 34-29 at halftime. The Grizzlies took their first lead at 43-41 on a jumper by Johnson with 13:22 left to play. The Vikings never regained the lead after that, but tied it two more times, with the final tie coming on Waters??? free throw at the 2:08 mark. Sharp was 6-of-8 from the field and 3-of-4 from the line and had a team-high 10 rebounds. Johnson made 4-of-6 shots and was 6-of-7 from the stripe, and UM senior forward Jordan Hasquet added 13 points. Junior forward Jamie Jones led the Vikings with 16 points, while sophomore forward Phil Nelson added 14, and Murray tallied 12. PSU junior forward Julius Thomas pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Montana was 25-of-51 (49.0%) from the field, made 7-of-13 (53.8%) treys, and was 15-of-20 (75.0%) from the line. PSU made 26-of-59 shots (44.1%), 9-of-26 (34.6%) three-pointers, and was 4-of-9 (44.4%) from the free throw line. UM had a 36-29 rebounding edge. The Grizzlies host the Eastern Washington Eagles on Saturday, Jan. 31, while the Vikings are at Montana State on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 1, for a 2:00 p.m. game on Altitude TV. MSU defeated EWU 69-65 Thursday evening in Bozeman.
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