Saturday, February 27
Pocatello, Idaho
11 AM
Montana
11-12, 7-9BSC
59
at
58
Idaho State
12-9, 7-5BSC
1
2
F
Montana
32
27
59
Idaho State
19
39
58
Montana hangs on for win, sweeps Idaho State
2/27/2021 3:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
POCATELLO, Idaho – At the end of the day, Montana had a joyous bus ride back to Missoula on Saturday afternoon after earning a 59-58 win over Idaho State and its first sweep of the season.
Montana freshman Robby Beasley III hit a mid-range jump shot on Montana's third offensive possession to tie the game at 2-2, and the Grizzlies never trailed from that point forward. The game, though, was far from without drama.
The Grizzlies led by 15 points in the second half and 10 points with 3 minutes to play.
After Montana's defense stifled Idaho State for most of the day, holding the Bengals to 27 points through the game's first 30 minutes, Idaho State hit fire, scoring 31 points over the next 9 minutes.
The Bengals' final two points tied the game at 58-58 with 68 seconds to play, and after Montana had its shot blocked on the other end of the floor, Idaho State had a chance to take its first lead since 2-0.
The Grizzlies got a big stop on defense, though, forcing Robert Ford III into a contested, off-balanced layup with 20 seconds to play, and Josh Bannan securing the rebound. Freshman Brandon Whitney brought the ball up the floor, got a screen from Bannan and drove to his right toward the rim. His driving layup was off, but Whitney drew a foul, sending the freshman to the free-throw line.
Whitney made the second of his two free-throw attempts to give the Grizzlies a 59-58 lead with 2.0 seconds to play. Idaho State's baseball pass was then intercepted just past midcourt by sophomore Kyle Owens, giving Montana its first sweep of the season.
Prior to the closing minutes, Montana's defense was suburb, with the Bengals opening the game shooting 9-of-36 (.250). The Bengals were 1-of-11 from 3-point range, before making six of their final seven, which allowed the home team to get back into the game.
The fact that Montana led for more than 36 minutes is a testament to the play of Beasley and junior Mack Anderson. The duo combined to score nine of Montana's first 12 points, as the Grizzlies jumped out to a 12-3 advantage. Once Idaho State closed to within two points, 14-12, Beasley took over, scoring nine consecutive points as Montana built a double-digit lead.
As a team, Montana out-rebounded Idaho State, 33 to 31, with eight different Grizzlies recording multiple boards, led by Owens' seven. Owens also had three steals, while junior Cameron Parker dished out four assists.
Montana won despite shooting .378 from the field, turning the ball over 18 times and giving up nine offensive rebounds. The Grizzlies, though, also forced 17 turnovers, and only allowed the Bengals to score three second-chance points.
Idaho State cut the deficit to eight points three separate times in the second half, with Montana answering on the other end all three times to push the lead back to double figures, until the Bengals finally broke through in the closing 3 minutes.
For the Grizzlies, they won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game winning streak Jan. 4-24. Montana also won its first Saturday conference game of the season (1-7) and swept a series for the first time. The win over Idaho State was Montana's 21st in a row dating back more than 11 years.
Gallery: (2-27-2021) MBB: at Idaho State (02.27.21)
QUOTING DECUIRE
Montana freshman Robby Beasley III hit a mid-range jump shot on Montana's third offensive possession to tie the game at 2-2, and the Grizzlies never trailed from that point forward. The game, though, was far from without drama.
The Grizzlies led by 15 points in the second half and 10 points with 3 minutes to play.
After Montana's defense stifled Idaho State for most of the day, holding the Bengals to 27 points through the game's first 30 minutes, Idaho State hit fire, scoring 31 points over the next 9 minutes.
The Bengals' final two points tied the game at 58-58 with 68 seconds to play, and after Montana had its shot blocked on the other end of the floor, Idaho State had a chance to take its first lead since 2-0.
The Grizzlies got a big stop on defense, though, forcing Robert Ford III into a contested, off-balanced layup with 20 seconds to play, and Josh Bannan securing the rebound. Freshman Brandon Whitney brought the ball up the floor, got a screen from Bannan and drove to his right toward the rim. His driving layup was off, but Whitney drew a foul, sending the freshman to the free-throw line.
Whitney made the second of his two free-throw attempts to give the Grizzlies a 59-58 lead with 2.0 seconds to play. Idaho State's baseball pass was then intercepted just past midcourt by sophomore Kyle Owens, giving Montana its first sweep of the season.
Montana won despite not making a basket over the game's final 3 minutes and being out-scored 11-2.KO WITH THE STEAL‼️#GrizHoops #GoGriz #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/URAbaQWIbw
— Montana Griz BB (@MontanaGrizBB) February 27, 2021
Prior to the closing minutes, Montana's defense was suburb, with the Bengals opening the game shooting 9-of-36 (.250). The Bengals were 1-of-11 from 3-point range, before making six of their final seven, which allowed the home team to get back into the game.
The fact that Montana led for more than 36 minutes is a testament to the play of Beasley and junior Mack Anderson. The duo combined to score nine of Montana's first 12 points, as the Grizzlies jumped out to a 12-3 advantage. Once Idaho State closed to within two points, 14-12, Beasley took over, scoring nine consecutive points as Montana built a double-digit lead.
A game after being held scoreless, Beasley scored a game-high 18 points, connecting on five shots and three 3-pointers. Beasley played a team-high 37 minutes. Anderson was also terrific, tying a career high with 15 points. The junior shot 5-of-6 form the floor and pulled down six rebounds.Beasley draining another one! 👀#GrizHoops #GoGriz #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/znfeGvUIou
— Montana Griz BB (@MontanaGrizBB) February 27, 2021
As a team, Montana out-rebounded Idaho State, 33 to 31, with eight different Grizzlies recording multiple boards, led by Owens' seven. Owens also had three steals, while junior Cameron Parker dished out four assists.
Montana won despite shooting .378 from the field, turning the ball over 18 times and giving up nine offensive rebounds. The Grizzlies, though, also forced 17 turnovers, and only allowed the Bengals to score three second-chance points.
Prior to Idaho State's late run, Montana also did a good job of holding off potential Bengals runs.Slammed in by Anderson 💪#GrizHoops #GoGriz #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/timkW5s6cZ
— Montana Griz BB (@MontanaGrizBB) February 27, 2021
Idaho State cut the deficit to eight points three separate times in the second half, with Montana answering on the other end all three times to push the lead back to double figures, until the Bengals finally broke through in the closing 3 minutes.
For the Grizzlies, they won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game winning streak Jan. 4-24. Montana also won its first Saturday conference game of the season (1-7) and swept a series for the first time. The win over Idaho State was Montana's 21st in a row dating back more than 11 years.
QUOTING DECUIRE
(on hanging on for the win)
"The biggest thing for us was that our mental toughness was really challenged Thursday and today, and we hung on and hung on and we made the plays we needed to make to finish the job. When you've got freshmen doing that and sophomores doing that, then you know your program is headed in the right direction."
(on Montana's defense)
"The thing I've always asked this team is can you win a game without scoring a ton of points? Can you help us win without being the hot hand? For us to shoot 37 percent from the floor and win is a sign of growth."
(on growing through adversity)
"If we can play through adversity then we can play at a high level. The biggest thing is we're so young that we have to experience some of those things before we can grow."
(on finally earning a series sweep)
"I feel like I've never had one before. It's an incredible feeling. But I tell you what, this bus ride is going to be the funnest bus ride we've had all year."
LOOKING AHEAD
After entering the week in ninth place, at 5-9 in Big Sky Conference play, the Grizzlies now are in position to potentially earn a first-round bye. The Grizzlies host Idaho for two games next week. The Vandals earned their first win of the season on Friday, beating Montana State. Montana needs to win both games, plus have a few other results fall its way, in order to earn a top-five seed.
"The biggest thing for us was that our mental toughness was really challenged Thursday and today, and we hung on and hung on and we made the plays we needed to make to finish the job. When you've got freshmen doing that and sophomores doing that, then you know your program is headed in the right direction."
(on Montana's defense)
"The thing I've always asked this team is can you win a game without scoring a ton of points? Can you help us win without being the hot hand? For us to shoot 37 percent from the floor and win is a sign of growth."
(on growing through adversity)
"If we can play through adversity then we can play at a high level. The biggest thing is we're so young that we have to experience some of those things before we can grow."
(on finally earning a series sweep)
"I feel like I've never had one before. It's an incredible feeling. But I tell you what, this bus ride is going to be the funnest bus ride we've had all year."
LOOKING AHEAD
Vazquez with the quick release from the 3!#GrizHoops #GoGriz #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/EIsDI8TsUX
— Montana Griz BB (@MontanaGrizBB) February 27, 2021
Team Stats
UM
ISU
FG%
.378
.375
3FG%
.313
.389
FT%
.800
.556
RB
33
31
TO
18
17
STL
5
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
6
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballMarch Madness Denver Pep Rally - 3/19/25
Thursday, March 20
Montana? Yes, Montana!
Wednesday, March 19
Griz Basketball Open Practice [March Madness] - 3/19/25
Wednesday, March 19
Griz Basketball Arrival To Denver [March Madness] - 3/18/25
Tuesday, March 18
