Jackrabbits pull away late, top Lady Griz

Saturday, December 7

Missoula, Mont.

2 PM

Montana

4-5

South Dakota State

7-2

South Dakota St.

Montana

Photo by: Ryan Brennecke/ University of Mo

12/7/2024 6:21:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Montana Sports Information

The game was there for the taking, for the winning.

And that's what makes playing a team like South Dakota State, the top-ranked squad in this week's mid-major national poll, so maddening.

The Jackrabbits, who have two ranked wins this season and a four-point loss in another, do their thing and do it well, just like they've been doing for decades now. They don't give games away. Rather, they force you to meet them at their level. Do it and you have a shot.

Montana did it for a bulk of Saturday's game and had its chances, using a stirring 10-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to pull even at 62-62 with less than five minutes left, but the Jackrabbits showed their been-there, done-that experience down the stretch, pulling away for a 78-70 win at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula on the final day of the Big Sky Conference-Summit League Challenge.

Oh, the chances. Montana missed a shot inside with 3:30 left that could have given the Lady Griz their first lead of the fourth quarter, missed a driving layup in a one-point game with 1:35 left, missed a corner three with 56 seconds left that could have tied it.

The Jackrabbits? They hit a pair of huge 3-pointers and went 10 for 12 from the free throw line over the game's final four minutes to improve to 7-2 on the season.

"That's a really good team. Top 40 in the NET, getting votes in the top 25. They are really, really good," said coach Brian Holsinger. "They did what they did down the stretch because they are really good.

"We battled and had our chances, we just couldn't quite get over the hump. Our performance says a lot about our team."

Because it wasn't just South Dakota State that Montana had to overcome.

The Lady Griz played at North Dakota State on Wednesday night, were supposed to arrive back in Missoula early afternoon on Thursday to begin preparations for the Jackrabbits.

Instead the team arrived home on Friday afternoon, skipped practice for the well-being of everyone, then did what prep work it could at Saturday morning's shoot-around.

And, still, the game was there for the taking, for the winning.

"We had a nightmare of travel, so I'm proud of these kids. They battled and we had chances to win," said Holsinger. "With the adversity we experienced, I'm really proud of them."

It was a standard South Dakota State game, which means the Jackrabbits shot 54.0 percent, went 8 for 16 from the 3-point line and 16 for 19 from the free throw line. SDSU took 21 second-half shots, made 13 of them. Took six from the 3-point line, made four of them. All nine Jackrabbits who stepped onto the court had an assist.

Maddening? Try dealing with Brooklyn Meyer inside. Last year's Summit League Player of the Year went 12 for 15, hit eight of her nine free throws and finished with 32 points.

Madison Mathiowetz went 3 for 4 from the 3-point line, finished with 11. Freshman Emilee Fox, 6 for 22 (.273) from the 3-point line on the season, came off the bench to go 4 for 5 from the arc. Stepping up in big moments is what a team like that does.

"You have to pick your poison. We figured if we could hold them to just under 70, we'd have a shot to win. We just couldn't get quite enough stops in the second half," said Holsinger.

"We couldn't hit some of the shots we needed to make or get a stop when we needed to. But that's why they're really good."

That Montana had the ball in a one-possession game and one minute on the clock says quite a bit about the Lady Griz as well.

Dani Bartsch hit five 3-pointers and scored 19 points, one off her career high. Adria Lincoln, who owns Montana's possessions when the shot clock gets under five seconds, went 5 for 6 and scored 12 points, her third time in four games with 10 or more.

Izabella Zingaro, who battled against Meyer so well, scored 10 points, the respect between the two evident in the second half when Zingaro went to the floor and Meyer, during play and without looking down, extended her hand to help up her opponent.

Mack Konig had a career-high 11 assists, helping Montana shoot a respectable 44.1 percent, while Avery Waddington came off the bench to score 11 points.

"I think we proved to ourselves that we can be the kind of team that can play with or beat a team like this," said Holsinger.

If there was any point in the game Holsinger probably wishes his team could do over again, it was the first quarter.

Montana was getting every shot it wanted, 16 taken, 16 good ones, nine from the 3-point line, but the Lady Griz hit only five of those 16 and trailed 18-13 after the first quarter.

Montana wasn't going to get away from South Dakota State with some more makes, but 23 on the scoreboard and up five would have set a different tone than it showing 13 and being down five.

"That was an important time. We got good looks. They gave us some single-gap kicks. We just needed to make a few," said Holsinger.

"We've had some really bad starts this season. Today we came out and battled a really good team, really physically battled them from the start."

The Lady Griz led for less than three minutes on Saturday but never lost touch with South Dakota State, whose largest lead never extended to more than 10.

South Dakota State closed the first half on a 10-2 run to take a 35-29 lead into the break and led 47-40 in the third when Montana hit the Jackrabbits with a 70-second blitz.

MJ Bruno hit a 3-pointer, Waddington finished at the basket and Lincoln hit a three to give the Lady Griz a 48-47 lead. Timeout South Dakota State.

What did the Jackrabbits do? They went to Meyer, who scored inside, then scored inside again to give SDSU a three-point lead. South Dakota State would not trail again in the game.

The South Dakota State lead was six going into the fourth quarter, 56-50, and reached a game-high 10, 62-52, when Meyer hit a pair of free throws with 7:47 remaining.

That's when Holsinger saw from his team something more important than its 4-5 record: the ability to fight back against a really good opponent.

Bartsch hit a three. Lincoln connected on a pull-up jumper. Bartsch hit another three. Waddington finished at the rim. Tied 62-62. Montana was in the midst of holding the Jackrabbits scoreless for nearly four minutes.

"These kids have heart," said Holsinger. "What they went through, for them to dig deep at that moment and make that kind of run against a team like that says a lot about their character and the future for our team going forward."

Then South Dakota State did what it does, the reason the Jackrabbits have played in either the NCAA tournament or WNIT every full season since 2006-07. They make plays and force you to keep up.

The Lady Griz lost by eight but who knows how one of those missed shots might have changed the game. But that's what SDSU does. It leaves you asking, what if?

"We aspire to be a program like that. They are the model for what Montana can be," said Holsinger.

Montana, which has finals next week, won't play again until facing Michigan State and Tulsa at the West Palm Beach Classic on Dec. 19 and 20.