Saturday, January 21
Missoula, Mont.
7 PM
Montana
9-11,3-5Big Sky
64
vs
67
Montana State
13-8,6-2Big Sky
1
2
F
Montana St.
35
32
67
Montana
29
35
64
Photo by: UM Photo/Tommy Martino
Griz rally comes up short against Bobcats
1/21/2023 10:52:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Montana Grizzlies put forth a valiant effort in the second half to come back from a halftime deficit against Montana State on Saturday night, but late free throws from the Bobcats were enough to hold on for the road win. It snaps an 11-game home winning streak in the series for Montana.
Aanen Moody had a heroic performance for the Grizzlies and looked on his way to cementing his spot in the legacy of the Brawl of the Wild. He scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half, igniting the crowd of 6,374 inside of Dahlberg Arena.
It brought them back into the game, and Montana was able to take a lead in the final minute on a Brandon Whitney lay-in. But on the other end Montana State were fouled on a three-point shot to take the lead back by one point, and the Grizzlies couldn't find a game-winner.
Montana is now 9-11 on the season and 3-5 in Big Sky play.
"We have to grow up a little bit, we have to toughen up a little bit. We have to keep believing," head coach Travis DeCuire said. "You have to work the same way you would if you had won a bunch of games. It might be time for a little change here and there, so we might try to look at some different things."
The Grizzlies won the second half 35-32 behind efficient shooting in a game that saw both teams extend possessions and look to get the ball to the rim. Montana went 10-for-22 in the second half and shot 45 percent from the field. They also made 11-of-12 free throws as well.
Moody's 21 was a team high, followed by Whitney at 17 and Dischon Thomas with 14 points. The trio all played different parts in the game for Montana, with Whitney doing much of his scoring early and Thomas turning it on late. In the comeback, however, it was the hot hand of Moody.
"He believes. He needs one to go in and then he's pretty much good after that," DeCuire said. "He heated up when we needed to, him and (Thomas) really carried us to the lead. Whitney kept us in the game, and those two got us to the top. He's a gamer."
The Bobcats led for most of the first half, building an early lead thanks to a 6-0 run out of the gates. Montana fought back, and actually gained the lead midway through the first on an and-one finish from Brandon Whitney. It gave the Griz a 19-18 lead, but Montana State countered right back.
The offense was highly efficient for Montana State, as made 64 percent of their shots in the first half. They made only one three-pointer, but the focus was to get it inside and they did that well. Montana's three bigs all got into foul trouble in the first half, and by the break MSU had increased their lead to six.
It grew to as many as nine points in the second half before foul trouble caught up to the Bobcats. The preseason Big Sky MVP Jubrile Belo had to sit for an extended period and Montana took advantage. The Grizzlies went small, playing four guards along with Mack Anderson. It worked.
Moody and Whitney each scored. Then Moody hit from three, and a 7-0 run from Montana had suddenly cut the lead to 42-40. All the while, Montana continued to get stops on the other end. Moody would hit another three, which really started to get the crowd into the game. A quick catch-and-shoot jumper knocked the lead down to one, but Montana State had yet another response.
The Grizzlies were right there, and Moody was willing them to it. He connected yet again on a three, scoring his 11th consecutive point for Montana. It was an ultimate "heat check" moment for the senior, and it was the spark Montana needed. He scored 15 out of 17 points during the stretch for the Griz. Bannan followed it up with a free throw on the next possession and the teams were tied with 7:28 remaining.
Both teams were in the bonus early, and Moody tied it up at the foul line on two separate occasions. Then Thomas hit a step-back jumper over Belo to tie it up yet again, but all the while Montana hadn't held a lead since 19-18.
They finally got their breakthrough on a pair of Whitney free throws that pushed the Griz ahead 59-57. Montana State would respond to tie it up, putting the ball in Montana's hands inside of two minutes.
In the late seconds of the shot clock Thomas caught on the perimeter and fired quickly. It went down, giving Montana its largest lead of the night at 62-59 and getting all 6,000-plus fans on their feet.
The answer would come on the other end with three-point play from Darius Brown II.
With another chance to take the lead, Montana went to Whitney this team. He hung in the lane and got a nice bounce on a floater to again put the Grizzlies in front, this time inside of one minute. But a foul on a RaeQuan Battle three-point attempt gave Montana State the lead back.
The Grizzlies had a couple of decent looks at the end, but couldn't get them to fall.
"(Thomas) makes a big shot and you think you're in a good spot," DeCuire said. "All you have to do is not foul and get a rebound and if they score two you are good, and we didn't do that."
Moody's heat check and the play of Thomas and Whitney got the applause from the crowd, but Montana was able to get back into the game thanks in large part to a stingy defense. After a big first half for Montana State, the Grizzlies turned it around completely.
The Bobcats shot just 36 percent over the final 20 minutes. They were able to score 32 points, but 15 of them came at the foul line. Montana's free throw defense, that uncontrollable factor, continues to hurt them. The Grizzlies shot 87.5 percent, making 14-of-16 attempts. Somehow, they were outperformed, as the Bobcats connected on 17-of-19 (89.5 percent).
"The scheme worked, we slowed them down and I said if we could hold them under 30 in the second half we'd be good," DeCuire said. "We were right there."
Gallery: (1-21-2023) MBB: Montana vs Montana State
Montana also rebounded the ball very well. Against the size of Bello and Great Osobor, Montana won the battle of the boards 33-19. It was the fewest rebounds all season for Montana State, who had just two on the offensive end. Mack Anderson was a big reason for that, grabbing seven boards to share the team-lead with Bannan.
The loss sends Montana back to the drawing board yet again. This is the first time the Griz have lost back-to-back games in conference play, although it came against the two teams atop the Big Sky standings at the moment. They have a chance on Thursday against Sacramento State to try to start turning things around.
Aanen Moody had a heroic performance for the Grizzlies and looked on his way to cementing his spot in the legacy of the Brawl of the Wild. He scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half, igniting the crowd of 6,374 inside of Dahlberg Arena.
It brought them back into the game, and Montana was able to take a lead in the final minute on a Brandon Whitney lay-in. But on the other end Montana State were fouled on a three-point shot to take the lead back by one point, and the Grizzlies couldn't find a game-winner.
Montana is now 9-11 on the season and 3-5 in Big Sky play.
"We have to grow up a little bit, we have to toughen up a little bit. We have to keep believing," head coach Travis DeCuire said. "You have to work the same way you would if you had won a bunch of games. It might be time for a little change here and there, so we might try to look at some different things."
The Grizzlies won the second half 35-32 behind efficient shooting in a game that saw both teams extend possessions and look to get the ball to the rim. Montana went 10-for-22 in the second half and shot 45 percent from the field. They also made 11-of-12 free throws as well.
Moody's 21 was a team high, followed by Whitney at 17 and Dischon Thomas with 14 points. The trio all played different parts in the game for Montana, with Whitney doing much of his scoring early and Thomas turning it on late. In the comeback, however, it was the hot hand of Moody.
"He believes. He needs one to go in and then he's pretty much good after that," DeCuire said. "He heated up when we needed to, him and (Thomas) really carried us to the lead. Whitney kept us in the game, and those two got us to the top. He's a gamer."
The Bobcats led for most of the first half, building an early lead thanks to a 6-0 run out of the gates. Montana fought back, and actually gained the lead midway through the first on an and-one finish from Brandon Whitney. It gave the Griz a 19-18 lead, but Montana State countered right back.
The offense was highly efficient for Montana State, as made 64 percent of their shots in the first half. They made only one three-pointer, but the focus was to get it inside and they did that well. Montana's three bigs all got into foul trouble in the first half, and by the break MSU had increased their lead to six.
We promise this is a new highlight, Brandon Whitney is just really good at this. He's up to 11 points now to lead Montana.#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/SZKCgKwsbi
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 22, 2023
It grew to as many as nine points in the second half before foul trouble caught up to the Bobcats. The preseason Big Sky MVP Jubrile Belo had to sit for an extended period and Montana took advantage. The Grizzlies went small, playing four guards along with Mack Anderson. It worked.
Moody and Whitney each scored. Then Moody hit from three, and a 7-0 run from Montana had suddenly cut the lead to 42-40. All the while, Montana continued to get stops on the other end. Moody would hit another three, which really started to get the crowd into the game. A quick catch-and-shoot jumper knocked the lead down to one, but Montana State had yet another response.
The Grizzlies were right there, and Moody was willing them to it. He connected yet again on a three, scoring his 11th consecutive point for Montana. It was an ultimate "heat check" moment for the senior, and it was the spark Montana needed. He scored 15 out of 17 points during the stretch for the Griz. Bannan followed it up with a free throw on the next possession and the teams were tied with 7:28 remaining.
r u serious!? The man is 𝗥𝗘𝗗 𝗛𝗢𝗧!
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 22, 2023
Moody has 15 in the second half alone and we're back within one!#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/qY7srYAs5v
Both teams were in the bonus early, and Moody tied it up at the foul line on two separate occasions. Then Thomas hit a step-back jumper over Belo to tie it up yet again, but all the while Montana hadn't held a lead since 19-18.
They finally got their breakthrough on a pair of Whitney free throws that pushed the Griz ahead 59-57. Montana State would respond to tie it up, putting the ball in Montana's hands inside of two minutes.
In the late seconds of the shot clock Thomas caught on the perimeter and fired quickly. It went down, giving Montana its largest lead of the night at 62-59 and getting all 6,000-plus fans on their feet.
𝑮𝑹𝑰𝒁 𝑩𝒀 𝑻𝑯𝑹𝑬𝑬!!!
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 22, 2023
Dischon Thomas drills the three and we're up 62-59 with under 90 seconds to play!#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/JxbcEMnjoD
The answer would come on the other end with three-point play from Darius Brown II.
With another chance to take the lead, Montana went to Whitney this team. He hung in the lane and got a nice bounce on a floater to again put the Grizzlies in front, this time inside of one minute. But a foul on a RaeQuan Battle three-point attempt gave Montana State the lead back.
Brandon Whitney hangs, hits, and we're back up in the final minute!#GrizHoops #BigSkyMBB #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/4k9HRdoo4A
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) January 22, 2023
The Grizzlies had a couple of decent looks at the end, but couldn't get them to fall.
"(Thomas) makes a big shot and you think you're in a good spot," DeCuire said. "All you have to do is not foul and get a rebound and if they score two you are good, and we didn't do that."
Moody's heat check and the play of Thomas and Whitney got the applause from the crowd, but Montana was able to get back into the game thanks in large part to a stingy defense. After a big first half for Montana State, the Grizzlies turned it around completely.
The Bobcats shot just 36 percent over the final 20 minutes. They were able to score 32 points, but 15 of them came at the foul line. Montana's free throw defense, that uncontrollable factor, continues to hurt them. The Grizzlies shot 87.5 percent, making 14-of-16 attempts. Somehow, they were outperformed, as the Bobcats connected on 17-of-19 (89.5 percent).
"The scheme worked, we slowed them down and I said if we could hold them under 30 in the second half we'd be good," DeCuire said. "We were right there."
Montana also rebounded the ball very well. Against the size of Bello and Great Osobor, Montana won the battle of the boards 33-19. It was the fewest rebounds all season for Montana State, who had just two on the offensive end. Mack Anderson was a big reason for that, grabbing seven boards to share the team-lead with Bannan.
The loss sends Montana back to the drawing board yet again. This is the first time the Griz have lost back-to-back games in conference play, although it came against the two teams atop the Big Sky standings at the moment. They have a chance on Thursday against Sacramento State to try to start turning things around.
Team Stats
MSU
Mont
FG%
.511
.449
3FG%
.200
.353
FT%
.895
.875
RB
19
33
TO
8
14
STL
4
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
6
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
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