Montana falls to Idaho 82-76

Thursday, February 17

Moscow, Idaho

7 PM (MT)

Montana

17-10, 10-6BSC

Idaho

7-18, 4-11BSC

Montana

Idaho

2/17/2022 9:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Postgame Audio

MOSCOW, Idaho – The Montana men's basketball team fell to Idaho, 76-82, Thursday night in Moscow. The Griz were seven points shy of beating the Vandals, and it all came down to the last few seconds.

Senior guard Cameron Parker led the team in points, scoring a season-high 22. The Grizzly went 9-15 (.600) in field goals and 3-3 on the free throw line. Nine baskets from the field tied Cameron's career-high of field goals made. On top of Parker's scoring abilities, the senior also led the team in assists with four.

Josh Bannan, sophomore forward, registered a double-double on the night scoring 21 points and tallying 12 rebounds. The sophomore also logged two assists and one block.

With the loss, Montana broke its five-game winning streak over Idaho and now extends is record to 10-6 in conference play. Despite the loss, the Griz still sit at fifth in the Big Sky Conference standings.

To start the game, Brandon Whitney gave the Griz their first basket of the night with a jump shot outside the paint. UM was trying to close the deficit for most of the first half until Lonnell Martin Jr. drained a three-pointer to put the Griz up 30-29 with 4:34 left. From there, Montana found momentum and exited the half leading 42-34.

Parker led the team in points and assists with 13 and three. Parker shot over 60% from the field goal range. Bannan trailed close behind, scoring 10 points while leading the team in rebounds with seven.

Montana entered halftime shooting 52%. As the second period started, Montana kept the momentum going with Bannan netting a three-pointer. Montana led the entire second period until the five-minute mark hit. From there, the momentum shifted to Idaho and allowed for the Vandals to take a six-point lead with seven seconds left in the game. Senior Parker had scored a layup to shorten the deficit by two, but ultimately it was not enough to pull out a win.

Montana will be back in action on Feb. 24 to face Southern Utah in Cedar City in preparation for the Big Sky Conference tournament on March 9. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tipoff at the America First Event Center.