Griz make final trip to Southern Utah looking to gain momentum

Following a layoff that saw just one game over an 11-day stretch, the Montana basketball team returns to the hardwood this week to take on Southern Utah in the team's final trip to Cedar City, Utah (Southern Utah is leaving the Big Sky Conference following this season for the WAC).

Thursday's matchup will come just 17 days after the two teams met in Missoula – a makeup game from mid-January – a 78-67 Griz victory over the preseason favorites. That night, Montana's stout defense held Southern Utah – which entered the game leading the Big Sky and ranked 21^st nationally for scoring – 13 points below its season average, leading to the Thunderbirds' lowest scoring output since December.

Montana's top-ranked defense was suffocating, limiting Southern Utah to .389 shooting. Fifth-year starter Dre Marin (11.3 points per game) was held to zero points and All-Big Sky guard John Knight III (14.7 points per game) was limited to nine points and five turnovers. Offensively, the Grizzlies were led by sophomore Josh Bannan, who scored a career-most 26 points, in addition to eight rebounds and two blocked shots. Sophomore Robby Beasley III (13 points, five assists), junior Lonnell Martin Jr. (11 points, six rebounds), sophomore Brandon Whitney (10 points, three steals) and senior Cameron Parker (nine points, six assists) were also effective offensively.

Montana took a 36-35 lead early in the second half and never trailed again, improving to 10-3 against Southern Utah under head coach Travis DeCuire.

TOTAL team effort last night 💪#Grizhoops #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/ChEtsOrqJ5
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) February 8, 2022

As good as Montana has been against Southern Utah, the win snapped a three-game losing skid to the Thunderbirds, with two of those losses coming in Cedar City. In fact, Montana's last three games at the America First Event Center have come down to the wire, with each being decided by a single possession.

In January 2020, Montana handed Southern Utah its first home loss of the season, and despite leading from start to finish, it took a steal on a tie-up with 4.2 seconds remaining to seal a 60-58 win.

Last season, the Grizzlies lost back-to-back one-point games, with Southern Utah scoring the go-ahead point at the free-throw line with 2.6 seconds (64-63 loss on Dec. 3) and 1.3 seconds (75-74 loss on Dec. 5) remaining.

Prior to the current stretch, Montana had won four consecutive games in Cedar City by double figures, by an average of 18.8 points.

Thursday will be Senior Night for Southern Utah's nine seniors, as the Thunderbirds brought back the nation's most experience in 2021-22. After winning the 2021 Big Sky regular-season title, Southern Utah was picked by coaches and media to repeat as champions, and currently is in the mix tied for third.

Gallery: (2-12-2022) MBB: vs. Portland State (2.12.22)

With two weeks remaining before the Big Sky Championship in Boise, Idaho, Southern Utah and Montana are two of five teams still vying for top positioning.

With a league record of 10-6 and two games ahead of sixth-place Eastern Washington – in addition to a season sweep over the Eagles – Montana has nearly locked up a top-five seed and a first-round bye in next month's tournament.

The Grizzlies still have plenty to play for, however, currently sitting one game behind both Southern Utah and Northern Colorado, who are tied for third place at 11-5, and 1.5 games back of second-place Weber State.

Three of the Grizzlies' final four games will come against teams currently ahead of them in the standings, giving Montana ample opportunities to move up in the final weeks. Following Thursday's tilt at Southern Utah, Montana returns home to host its final three games against first-place Montana State (Sunday), third-place Northern Colorado (Thursday, March 3) and last-place Sacramento State (Saturday, March 5).

The Big Sky standings remain top heavy, but things have definitely shifted over the past three weeks. Entering February, the bottom-five teams in the league were just 12-39 (.235). Since then, that same group of teams has gone 12-17 (.417), evening out the standings exponentially.

Montana started the season 5-0 against that group of teams, but over the past three weeks has gone 1-3, with losses at Idaho State and Idaho and at home to Northern Arizona. While the losses were unexpected to most observers, Montana is not alone.

Idaho State started league play 1-9, but starting with a Feb. 5 win over Montana, has split its last six decisions, including wins over the Grizzlies and third-place Northern Colorado. Similarly, Idaho started Big Sky play just 2-11, but over the past 11 days has won three straight contests, knocking off Weber State, Montana and Eastern Washington – all teams ranked in the upper-half of the standings. Even Portland State, which Montana beat Feb. 12 at home, has won five of its past seven games, with its two losses coming to the Grizzlies and first-place Bobcats by three points.

At 17-10 overall, Montana is guaranteed a winning record, which will be the program's 14^th straight season at .500 or better, making Montana one of 19 teams nationally to boast that claim. The Grizzlies will try to increase their win total a few more times before the Big Sky tournament, however, solidifying seeding and gaining momentum going into Boise.

Tipoff on Thursday is slated for 7 p.m. on ESPN+ and the Grizzly Radio Network.

Next up in Dahlberg, Griz/Cat!

🎟 https://t.co/XiyUXJJyav pic.twitter.com/X2RKkxwgN1
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) February 22, 2022

Griz make final trip to Southern Utah looking to gain momentum

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Josh Bannan

Robby Beasley III

Lonnell Martin Jr.

Cameron Parker

Brandon Whitney

University of Montana Athletics

Griz make final trip to Southern Utah looking to gain momentum

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Josh Bannan

Robby Beasley III

Lonnell Martin Jr.

Cameron Parker

Brandon Whitney

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