Bobcats top Lady Griz in Bozeman

Monday, January 24

Bozeman, Mont.

7 PM

Montana

12-5, 5-3BSC

Montana State

11-8, 6-2BSC

Montana

Montana State

Photos: Montana State Athletics

1/24/2022 9:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

For all the changes he's made within the Lady Griz program since being hired in April, first-year Montana women's basketball coach Brian Holsinger wasn't going to be able to size up his team's demons residing within Brick Breeden Fieldhouse until he got a chance to experience them in person.

He got his chance on Monday night. And he's got some work to do. Montana State 73, Montana 59, in a game the Bobcats led by 21 in the second half and for the final 35 minutes. It was Montana State's eighth straight win over Montana in Bozeman, the last six coming by 14 or more points.

The demons. How else to explain two turnovers, both unforced, on the team's opening two possessions of the game? Or getting outrebounded for just the second time this season? Or one of the nation's least-penalized teams getting whistled for a season-high 19 fouls?

How else to explain a team that's owned the third quarter this season getting outscored 22-13 in that critical period on Monday? Or missing 12 free throws? None of it makes much sense. Until you remember the demons. They're a lot to face down when they've grown this large.

Holsinger had witnessed his team play 16 games previously this season, a dozen of them wins. Then he saw a team on Monday night that he didn't recognize. Same players but not being themselves.

"There are some things that have gone on in this rivalry that we have to break," Holsinger said after the game. "There is a mental block that I have to help them get through.

"We weren't ready for the mental aspect of playing against that team tonight. It was very evident from the start. That's on me. I'll take it. I didn't have them ready to play."

Montana actually did some good things on the defensive end. It forced Montana State's two leading scorers, Darian White and Kola Bad Bear, into 5-of-22 shooting. But that just gave opportunities for their teammates and did they ever deliver, going 9 of 13 from the 3-point line.

Taylor Janssen came off the bench to score a season-high 14 points, hitting all four of her 3-point attempts. Katelynn Limardo went 2 for 2 from the arc.

Up 34-30 at the half, Montana State went 4 for 5 from the 3-point line in the third quarter to pull away for good.

"We're not in a place in our program where we're mentally tough enough yet to understand that if this kid can shoot, you have to be there on the catch," said Holsinger.

"We just did a really poor job getting out to shooters. We've not done that all year. Then in this game, we do weird things we haven't done all year." Blame the demons.

"But that's on me, that's not on them. I have to get them prepared to play. We weren't prepared to win tonight."

There was so much hope on the Montana sideline, so many good vibes from that 12-4 start. But once the ball went up, the Lady Griz played like they wanted to win, the Bobcats like they knew they'd win.

It's how Montana used to approach the rivalry game. It's why Holsinger was hired, to get it back.

"I haven't seen a team look like that in a long time, so whatever I said before the game didn't work," he said. "We weren't ready to execute in the environment that was out there.

"I don't want to take anything away from Montana State. They're a good team. They punched us in the mouth and we didn't respond."

Montana State led 4-0 off Montana's two early turnovers before the game was 35 seconds old.

Abby Anderson opened the scoring for the Lady Griz and Sammy Fatkin, who would lead both teams with 24 points, her seventh straight game in double figures, her high game since putting 25 on North Dakota, added back-to-back to baskets to make it 6-4.

Montana would go up 7-6 on an Anderson free throw, but Limardo hit a 3-pointer and Montana State would lead the rest of the game. Janssen followed with her first 3-pointer to make it 12-7.

The first-quarter media timeout gave Holsinger a chance to address his team.

"I tried to shock them at that first timeout," he said. "I was as mad as I've been all season, thinking they might snap out of what was going on. They never really did. Their confidence wavered.

"We didn't play a smart style tonight. We're supposed to take away shots, and we didn't take away shots. We've done those things to be where we are. We just didn't do it tonight."

Montana went 6 for 12 in the second quarter and trailed by just four, 34-30 at the break.

The hope in the halftime locker room came from two things: Montana had not played well on the offensive end the first 20 minutes and still trailed by just four. And the Lady Griz had outscored their opponents 308-217 in the third quarter this season.

This one went the other way, with Montana State's four 3-pointers in the third period each striking heavier than the last. Montana shot just 3 for 13 in the period.

"Going into the half, I was encouraged. I thought we'd turn things around in the second half and it kind of snowballed," said Holsinger. "That's been a good quarter for us and it just wasn't. We didn't fight like I'd hoped."

Montana State led 56-43 after three periods and built its lead to 21 points, 69-48, in the fourth, Montana's largest deficit of the season.

Fatkin and Haley Huard, who hit her only 3-pointer of the game in the final minutes, outscored Montana State 11-4 over the final 2:57.

In addition to Fatkin's 24 points, Anderson finished with 10. Nobody else scored more than five. "We weren't in attack mode," said Holsinger. "We were on our heels all night based on their defense, so credit to them."

Montana will play at Eastern Washington on Saturday, which will commence a stretch of seven games in 15 days, five of them on the road, each taking place in a different state.

"We'll improve from this," said Holsinger. "You always get better from games like this." As for those demons? Now that he knows what he's up against, he will have a full year to plan for his team's next visit. Both sides will be ready.