Montana
Portland State
Grizzlies edge Vikings 85-84
2/24/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2011
Box Score
Sophomore guard Will Cherry scored a team-high 24 points and made two critical free throws in the closing seconds, as The University of Montana Grizzlies hung on to register an 85-84 win over the host Portland State Vikings Thursday night in a crucial Big Sky Conference game in PSU's Stott Center.
The victory improves the Grizzlies' league record to 12-3, and they remain a game ahead of Northern Colorado, which is 10-3 in conference games and hosts Northern Arizona (8-6) on Saturday.
Montana will more than likely play the Easter Washington Eagles in Cheney this Saturday for the Big Sky's regular-season championship. The Griz and Bears split this season in head-to-head meeting; both UM and NC have lost to the same teams, and Montana holds a slight edge in the third tie-breaker criteria, a higher RPI (113 to 121). Host EWU (8-19/5-9) lost 60-56 to Montana State this evening.
The Grizzlies, who have now won 20 games (20-8) for the second season in a row (they won 22 last year), took a 10-point lead with 1:11 left in the game when freshman guard-forward Kareem Jamar scored on a lay-up to give Montana an 80-70 advantage.
The Vikings (12-15/4-10) battled back, though, and cut the Griz lead to two (83-81) with 10 seconds remaining on a three-point shot senior guard Alonzo Brandon.
Cherry was fouled with eight seconds remaining, and nailed both free throws to give the Grizzlies an 85-81 advantage. PSU's senior forward Phil Nelson made a three-pointer at the buzzer to for the final points of the contest.
Montana took an early 6-4 lead on a jumper by junior forward Derek Selvig at the 17:50 mark of the first half, and the Griz led the rest of the way. Montana led 47-35 at halftime.
Cherry had a superb all-around game, making 9-of-15 field goal attempts, 4-of-5 free throws, and dishing out a career-high 10 assists in 40 minutes of action.
Griz senior center Brian Qvale added 16 points and 10 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. He also had 3 blocks, which gives him 84 (a school record) for the season and increases his Big Sky and UM career record total to 236.
Sophomore forward Mathias Ward was stellar off the bench, matching his career-high with 14 points, making 4-of-5 shots from the floor and canning 6-6 free throws.
PSU junior forward Chehales Tapscott scored a game-high 28 points and made 12-of-16 shots.
The Griz game at EWU will be aired on Altitude TV beginning at 6:00 p.m. (Mtn.) this Saturday. PSU hosts the Bobcats on Saturday.
