Hicks sparks Griz to big win over Hornets

Thursday, February 26

Missoula, Mont.

7:00 PM

Montana

15-14,9-7Big Sky

Sacramento State

9-19,5-11Big Sky

Sacramento St.

Montana

Photo by: Ryan Brennecke / University of Montana

2/26/2026 10:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Montana Sports Information

Head coach Travis DeCuire made a change to the starting lineup for the first time in over a month on Thursday night, and the move paid dividends to get Montana off to a fast start against Sacramento State. They would never trail as they swatted the Hornets 81-73 in a solid conference win.

The Grizzlies (15-14, 9-7 Big Sky) had gone through a bit of a tough stretch, but still remain right in the thick of a tight Big Sky Conference race. The win puts Montana in a tie for 4^th place in the league standings with Weber State with two games to go.

DeCuire inserted Brooklyn Hicks into the starting lineup for just the second time this season and first time in Big Sky play. The guard delivered with one of his best games of the season, scoring 16 points to go with 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals.

Hicks had seven of the first 13 points for Montana as they jumped out to a 13-2 lead in the opening five minutes.

"We needed to be the aggressor," DeCuire said. "We started off some games fairly aggressive in the first two or three minutes and then got a little stagnant. We wanted someone that would force the issue a little bit on both sides of the ball. I thought him and Money were a good combination."

Hicks had a dozen points in the first half to get Montana out to a fast start. Money Williams scored 14 points after the break to help the Grizzlies seal the win. But it wasn't just Hicks in the first half lifting the Grizzlies to the big lead.

Te'Jon Sawyer had his second double-double of the season and first against a D-I opponent in a Montana uniform with 11 points and 12 rebounds, which matched a career high. Sawyer had 8 points and 7 rebounds in the first half alone.

It's the final weekend at home for the senior Sawyer, and he played with urgency on Thursday night, diving for balls, picking up two steals, and impacting the game in many ways that don't appear on a stat sheet in his 31 minutes on the floor.

"He's a senior and he wants to go out with a bang," DeCuire said of Sawyer. "We really emphasized our hustle chart this week in practice with deflections and offensive rebounds, getting on the floor, things like that. I'm pretty sure he won that tonight. He wants to win, and you can see it in his effort."

The Griz had an early lead, but Sacramento State was able to get things back level at 17-17 following an 8-0 run. They also tied it up at 25-all with five minutes to play. Both times that the Hornets got the game level, Tyler Thompson responded with a three to put Montana back on top.

Williams added to it and Kenyon Aguino made a layup to give the Grizzlies eight straight points and a 35-27 lead. They would head to the locker rooms up 42-32 after a first half that saw Montana go 8-of-19 from beyond the arc.

The Grizzlies were hot from three-point range, but they also took the high-powered Hornets out of their offense for long stretches in the first half. Sacramento State entered with the Big Sky's top offense at 80 points per game. They were far from their usual scoring pace at halftime.

"We kept them out of paint for the most part and took away what they were trying to get," DeCuire said. "They had to find some new ways to get offense and they tweaked some things coming out of timeouts to get other looks, but we took them out of sync early and made them passive offensively."

Montana maintained a double-digit lead for much of the second half, going up by 16 points after an Aguino layup with 13:28 to play in the game. They were ahead by 15 points entering the final five minutes, but a couple of late runs by the Hornets made things interesting.

Williams scored 9 straight Grizzly points over a six minute stretch, but the ball wasn't going in for the Grizzlies and the Hornets clawed back into it, cutting the lead down to just four at 77-73 with just over a minute to play.

The Grizzly defense would hold down the stretch, forcing misses on the final three possessions for Sacramento State to close out the game.

Montana shot over 50 percent for the 12^th time this season, going 27-of-53 (.509) from the floor and 11-of-29 (.379) from three-point range. There were big threes at several key moments for the Grizzlies on the night with six different Grizzlies connecting from the arc.

"We make threes when the ball goes in the paint, whether it's off penetration from the drive or the post feed," DeCuire said. "The ones we made for the most part were inside out where we were squared to the hoop. It's the easiest shot in the game when you're standing in one spot and it's catch-and-shoot."

The Grizzlies had used the same starting lineup in 10 straight games. They were 5-5 in that stretch. DeCuire mixed things up for the first time since Jan. 17 and not only did Hicks deliver, but so did the man he replaced.

Grant Kepley played 21 minutes off the bench and finished with 9 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. He was a +9 in his time on the floor and shot 60 percent from the field.

"You want to give guys some confidence and sometimes change gives confidence," DeCuire said. "There is an expectation that comes with change and sometimes you need pressure on some guys. It's funny how you do that and then the guys we made changes with played the best that they have in a while."

Montana responded from a difficult two weeks having lost three straight with a much-needed win in impressive fashion. They had seven players score and had 18 assists on 27 made baskets in a complete team effort.

Under DeCuire, the Grizzlies are always dangerous at the Big Sky Tournament. They have won 51 games in program history there, more than any other team, and have reached the title game six times in 10 tries under DeCuire.

The momentum may not have been on their side the last two weeks, but things are turning at the right time for the Griz.

"How you respond is the only thing that matters," DeCuire said. "If you respond positively and you come out and perform, play well, and win, nobody remembers your last game. Then you build on that. The most important thing for us is that we build on this into Saturday. If we can create a little momentum, the confidence rises, and then the tournament is anybody's."

Montana closes the regular season out with a home game on Saturday against Portland State followed by a quick road trip to Greeley to play Northern Colorado. The Vikings have clinched a share of the regular season title, leading the league at 12-4.

Northern Colorado lost on Thursday, ending a 7-game winning streak as they have been the hottest team in the league in February.

It will be two big tests for a Montana team that needs one more victory to guarantee a .500 or better record for the 18^th straight season. But more importantly, a win or two would give the Grizzlies confidence that they can make a run at Starch Madness.

"It would be a message for ourselves in the locker room," DeCuire said. "We aren't as concerned with what other people think or what our opponents think, but it's a chance for us to give ourselves a little confidence going into this. We have an opportunity to take care of business and feel good about going to Boise."

The game on Saturday will tip off at 2:00 p.m. and Montana will honor seniors Te'Jon Sawyer and Trae Taylor prior to the opening tip.