Late rally falls short against Air Force

Sunday, November 27

USAFA, Colo.

1 PM

Montana

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Air Force

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Montana

Air Force

Photo by: Timothy Hepler/Air Force

11/27/2022 6:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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By: Montana Sports Information

A second-half rally for Montana came up just short on the road at the US Air Force Academy on Sunday afternoon as the Falcons held on for a 59-54 victory. The Griz went cold in the second half for a stretch to fall behind by double-figures, but staged an impressive comeback to get within a point late. The rally would come up agonizingly short as Montana dropped to 3-4 on the season.

In a matchup featuring two teams that like to slow the pace down, defense told the story of the game. Air Force held Montana to just one made three pointer in the game and under 50 percent shooting. The lone triple came at a perfect time as Lonnell Martin Jr. hit one late to cut the lead to just one point, but free throws from the hosts would put the game just out of reach.

It was the first time this season Montana played in a game decided by single digits and tested the late game ability and decision making of the Grizzlies. Head Coach Travis DeCuire liked what he saw from his team in that situation. They held Air Force without a field goal for the final five-plus minutes of the game and went on a 12-1 run during the stretch to give themselves a chance at the end.

"I thought the guys did a good job of managing that," DeCuire said of the late game situation. "We fouled the guys we wanted to foul. It was working out, we were probably just one made three away from overtime or winning."

The Grizzlies were still playing without Aanen Moody, although they did get a big performance from Brandon Whitney in his return to action. The junior had missed the previous two and a half games due to injury, and looked eager to make his presence felt in his return. He scored 10 of Montana's first 14 points of the game, finishing with a season-high 17 points on an efficient 7-for-9 shooting day.

He attacked the rim at will in the early going, which was a theme for Montana's entire offense. The first 20 points of the game for the Griz came inside the paint. Whitney and Bannan had the first 14 points for Montana, who struggled shooting out of the gates.

There were no easy baskets for either side early on. Montana forced four shot clock violations in about 13 minutes of game time and climbed back to tie the game on several occasions in the opening portion. After facing its biggest deficit of the opening half at 16-10, the Griz went on a 6-0 run to tie it up on a Dischon Thomas dunk.

Gallery: (11-27-2022) MBB: Montana at Air Force

Air Force edged back ahead, but Whitney's 10^th point of the half evened it back up at 20-all. It would be the last time the Grizzlies were tied. Air Force took a one-point lead into the halftime break, but it could have been larger if not for freshman Jaxon Nap, who subbed in with 35 seconds left, snagged an offensive rebound on Montana's final possession and laid the ball in for the 24-23 halftime score.

The Falcons went on a little run out of the locker rooms. Corbin Green had nine points on 4-for-4 shooting to counter a couple of Griz baskets. They would build the lead up to a then-game high eight points at 35-27. Montana responded, and again it was Whitney attacking the rim to generate the offense. His three-point play with 15:38 remaining had Montana within three points.

That's about when the game started to slip away from Montana. Bannan would add a basket at the 13:47 mark, but the Griz would spend the next five and a half minutes scoreless. They would get a few free throws, but trailed 50-38 before Martin Jr. made a lay-up that ended a run of nearly eight minutes without a field goal.

The momentum would start to shift back toward the Griz. A quick Falcon basket at the 5:08 mark, their last field goal of the game, made it 52-40. Then Montana made its move. Bannan made a lay-up and they got five quick points from Jonathan Brown who looked aggressive down the stretch. Another bucket from Bannan set up the look for Martin Jr. Moving to his right, he rose up and knocked down the lone three-pointer of the game for Montana to cut the lead to just one and cap off the 12-1 run.

After a pair of made free throws from Air Force, Brown again drove to the basket for lay-in with 18 seconds left to make it a one-point game. But the Falcons would make their free throws down the stretch and the Griz would just miss on a chance to tie the game. Bannan's dunk at the buzzer cur it to the 59-56 final score.

The run for Montana started on the defensive end, and while he may not jump out on the stat sheet the play of Mack Anderson was crucial for the Griz late in the game.

"Mack's activity defensively blocking shots and contesting shots, going above the rim rebounding," DeCuire said of the keys to Montana's comeback attempt. "Our guards did a better job of taking away the backdoor lay-ups. We were taking away threes and to do that you pay a little bit of a price. Mack was the one guy in the middle that could clean that up for us so we were able to get away with some of our aggression during that stretch."

The back-cut from Air Force hurt Montana early on, but was rendered ineffective down the stretch. A team that loves to shoot from the arc were also kept in check in that department, as Montana's defense gave up just three makes from three-point range on 21 percent shooting.

Montana did well in the paint, scoring 44 points (79 percent of the team's total) inside the restricted area. Whitney's season-high 17 points led the offense, followed by Bannan with 15 and Brown with 10 points off the bench. It was the second-straight game for Brown in double-figures.

The Griz had a season-low 56 points and seven assists. They had another impressive defensive effort, holding their opponent under 60 points for the fourth time in the first seven games. Montana also held a rebounding advantage of nine. It's the fourth time in the last five games they have held the edge on the glass. They outrebounded D-1 opposition in just six games last season.

Ball control hurt Montana on the road, turning it over 13 times for 17 Air Force points. The Falcons outscored Montana 17-9 off of turnovers.

"Always room for improvement. I think attention to detail on the offensive side of the ball led to some turnovers that probably shouldn't have taken place in the first half," DeCuire said. "Down one when we could be up six or seven. The first three minutes of the second half really are the tale of the game. Too many high percentage shots and we never really recovered until late."

Montana now journeys southeast to take on Southern Miss on Tuesday. It will be another challenge in a very difficult non-conference schedule for the Griz. The Golden Eagles are a perfect 7-0 on the season and coming off a 51-point victory over NAIA opponent Mobile.

GRIZ NOTES

Josh Bannan reached 15 points for the fourth time in Montana's seven games. He is averaging 14.9 points and 10.0 rebounds on the season.
Jonathan Brown came off the bench to score 10 points, eight of which came in the final 10 minutes. It's the second straight game he has reached double-figures.
Brandon Whitney scored a season high 17 points. He had 12 of the points in the first half.
Josh Vazquez started his second game of the season in place of Aanen Moody.
Montana shot 47 percent from the field, its best mark in a game this season. But season lows in three point field goals (1) and free throws (7) held Montana to its lowest point total.
The one made three pointer was the fewest for Montana since March 5, 2020 against Northern Colorado.