Thursday, January 27
Missoula, Mont.
7 PM
Montana
14-6, 7-2BSC
81
vs
62
Idaho
5-15, 2-8BSC
1
2
F
Idaho
29
33
62
Montana
35
46
81
Photo by: Tommy Martino/UM Athletics
Griz remain unbeaten at home, lead from start to finish in win over Idaho
1/27/2022 10:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MISSOULA, Mont. – Montana improved to 10-0 on its home court with an 81-62 victory over the visiting Idaho Vandals on Thursday night. The Grizzlies scored the game's first basket and never trailed, leading by as many as 25 points in a wire-to-wire win.
After averaging 62.0 points per game in road wins last week over Portland State and Northern Arizona, the offense's 81-point outburst will catch the attention of fans, as Montana shot .542 from the floor (season-best against Division-I competition) and had four players in double figures for scoring (and six players with at least eight points).
But Thursday's game was once again won on defense, as Montana shut down an Idaho squad that came into the contest averaging 74.5 points per game. Even bigger was what the Griz, led by sophomore guard Brandon Whitney, did to Idaho's Mikey Dixon, the Big Sky's scoring leader.
Dixon entered Thursday averaging a league-best 21.8 points per Big Sky game, shooting .480 from the floor and .868 from the free-throw line. Dixon ranks in the top 60 nationally for scoring and is among the national leaders for fouls drawn, getting to the line at the fifth-most frequency in all of college basketball and making the third-most free throws.
On Thursday, one of the Big Sky's top players was completely shut out.
In 22 minutes, Dixon shot 0-for-6 for zero points. He never got to the free throw line and turned the ball over twice.
"It starts with Brandon Whitney," head coach Travis DeCuire said of his team's defensive effort. "To take a (22)-point-per-game scorer and hold him to zero, you've got a good shot to win a game when you take a guy completely out of the game like that. As a unit, we're doing a phenomenal job of executing and sticking to the details and playing together."
That allowed Montana to turn a 35-29 halftime advantage into a route.
Despite never trailing, Idaho remained pesky hanging between eight and 14 points through the game's first 28 minutes.
Gallery: (1-27-2022) MBB: vs. Idaho (1.27.22)
A Josh Bannan pull-up jumper pushed the advantage to double figures, 56-46, with 11 minutes, 47 seconds to play, and ignited a 9-0 scoring run over just 89 seconds, however. The run extended to 23-6 as Montana later used an 8-0 run to earn a game-high 77-52 lead with 5:29 remaining.
"We started locking down on some details in the second half and that really turned things for us," DeCuire said. "We had 32 points off the bench and 50 points in the paint. When the ball moves side to side and we're patient, we shoot for percentage, and then there was no letdown in effort or defensive execution."
Bannan, who is nearly averaging a double-double and is proving to be one of the league's most valuable players, again was fantastic, leading the Grizzlies with 18 points and nine boards.
In addition to locking down Dixon, holding the Grand Canyon transfer to zero points while also recording three steals, Whitney scored a dozen points on the offensive end, shooting 6-of-10.
Montana also got 13 minutes and eight points from senior Scott Blakney, as the forward made his first four shot attempts in his first game against his former team. Blakney, a graduate transfer, played in 101 games for Idaho from 2017-18 through 2020-21.
With the win, Montana extended its home winning streak to 12 games dating back to last February. Over 10 home games this season, Montana has trailed in the second half for just 10 of 200 minutes, and never by more than four points.
The Grizzlies will look to carry those numbers over to Saturday when they host Eastern Washington (7 p.m.). Montana and Eastern Washington are the two winningest teams in the Big Sky over the past eight seasons, with the two winning nine total Big Sky championships (regular-season or tournament) during that span.
History will also be on the line as DeCuire – who earned his 156th win on Thursday, passing his mentor and College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Mike Montgomery for third on the school's all-time wins list – will aim for his 100th Big Sky Conference victory. He is looking to become just the fourth coach in Big Sky history to do so.
"It means a lot," DeCuire said when asked about passing Montgomery. "I think it shows how good Jud (Heathcote) was, how good (Jim) Brandenburg was, how good Mike was, because each time, the person who followed surpassed the previous coach in one way or another.
"Now, it's me doing my job to continue the success of the tree before me, and I'm fortunate to have been part of it, going after some phenomenal coaches who went before me."
After averaging 62.0 points per game in road wins last week over Portland State and Northern Arizona, the offense's 81-point outburst will catch the attention of fans, as Montana shot .542 from the floor (season-best against Division-I competition) and had four players in double figures for scoring (and six players with at least eight points).
But Thursday's game was once again won on defense, as Montana shut down an Idaho squad that came into the contest averaging 74.5 points per game. Even bigger was what the Griz, led by sophomore guard Brandon Whitney, did to Idaho's Mikey Dixon, the Big Sky's scoring leader.
Dixon entered Thursday averaging a league-best 21.8 points per Big Sky game, shooting .480 from the floor and .868 from the free-throw line. Dixon ranks in the top 60 nationally for scoring and is among the national leaders for fouls drawn, getting to the line at the fifth-most frequency in all of college basketball and making the third-most free throws.
On Thursday, one of the Big Sky's top players was completely shut out.
In 22 minutes, Dixon shot 0-for-6 for zero points. He never got to the free throw line and turned the ball over twice.
"It starts with Brandon Whitney," head coach Travis DeCuire said of his team's defensive effort. "To take a (22)-point-per-game scorer and hold him to zero, you've got a good shot to win a game when you take a guy completely out of the game like that. As a unit, we're doing a phenomenal job of executing and sticking to the details and playing together."
As a team, Montana forced the Vandals into 15 turnovers, converting the giveaways into 20 points. After Idaho shot .522 in the first half – including 4-of-6 from long range – the Vandals shot just .393 in the second half and missed all six 3-point attempts.Make that 12 points for Brandon Whitney#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/I4X40nBE3S
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 28, 2022
That allowed Montana to turn a 35-29 halftime advantage into a route.
Despite never trailing, Idaho remained pesky hanging between eight and 14 points through the game's first 28 minutes.
A Josh Bannan pull-up jumper pushed the advantage to double figures, 56-46, with 11 minutes, 47 seconds to play, and ignited a 9-0 scoring run over just 89 seconds, however. The run extended to 23-6 as Montana later used an 8-0 run to earn a game-high 77-52 lead with 5:29 remaining.
"We started locking down on some details in the second half and that really turned things for us," DeCuire said. "We had 32 points off the bench and 50 points in the paint. When the ball moves side to side and we're patient, we shoot for percentage, and then there was no letdown in effort or defensive execution."
Bannan, who is nearly averaging a double-double and is proving to be one of the league's most valuable players, again was fantastic, leading the Grizzlies with 18 points and nine boards.
Cameron Parker (15 points on 5-of-7 shooting, plus four assists) and Robby Beasley III (13 points and two steals) were also in double figures, as was Whitney, who was a threat on both ends of the floor.Starting the second half strong 💪#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/eP5SUS7Rkh
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 28, 2022
In addition to locking down Dixon, holding the Grand Canyon transfer to zero points while also recording three steals, Whitney scored a dozen points on the offensive end, shooting 6-of-10.
Montana also got 13 minutes and eight points from senior Scott Blakney, as the forward made his first four shot attempts in his first game against his former team. Blakney, a graduate transfer, played in 101 games for Idaho from 2017-18 through 2020-21.
With the win, Montana extended its home winning streak to 12 games dating back to last February. Over 10 home games this season, Montana has trailed in the second half for just 10 of 200 minutes, and never by more than four points.
The Grizzlies will look to carry those numbers over to Saturday when they host Eastern Washington (7 p.m.). Montana and Eastern Washington are the two winningest teams in the Big Sky over the past eight seasons, with the two winning nine total Big Sky championships (regular-season or tournament) during that span.
History will also be on the line as DeCuire – who earned his 156th win on Thursday, passing his mentor and College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Mike Montgomery for third on the school's all-time wins list – will aim for his 100th Big Sky Conference victory. He is looking to become just the fourth coach in Big Sky history to do so.
"It means a lot," DeCuire said when asked about passing Montgomery. "I think it shows how good Jud (Heathcote) was, how good (Jim) Brandenburg was, how good Mike was, because each time, the person who followed surpassed the previous coach in one way or another.
"Now, it's me doing my job to continue the success of the tree before me, and I'm fortunate to have been part of it, going after some phenomenal coaches who went before me."
Scott Blakney bringing the heat to Dahlberg tonight!#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB pic.twitter.com/l8FHqSG1C7
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 28, 2022
Team Stats
IDA
UM
FG%
.451
.542
3FG%
.333
.313
FT%
.545
.800
RB
32
33
TO
15
10
STL
3
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
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