Cedric Thompkins tied for the team lead with eight rebounds. |
Steve Horne scored a career-high 19 points and David Bell added 17 to lead Montana to a 66-59 victory over Sacramento State Saturday evening in front of a sellout crowd of 7,332 at Dahlberg Arena.
The win lifted the Grizzlies to 9-13 overall and 3-4 in the Big Sky Conference. The Hornets dropped to 8-12 overall and 2-5 in league games.
After UM scored the first two points of the contest, Sacramento State went on a 13-2 run to claim an early nine-point lead. The Griz quickly answered with a 10-3 run of their own to pull within two (16-14). Montana eventually took an 18-17 lead after a pair of free throws from Kevin Criswell with 5:51 left in the first half.
The Grizzlies pushed their lead to five (24-19) before the Hornets received a three-pointer and a layup from Raashad Hooks to tie the game. The two teams then exchanged the lead twice before Horne gave UM a 30-29 halftime advantage on a layup with 36 seconds showing.
The lead proved to be plenty for Montana who never trailed in the second period. The Hornets were able to pull within one point on three occasions. The latest incident came with 12:44 remaining after Brandon Guyton hit a three-pointer to make the score 40-39.
From that point, the Grizzlies went on a 16-3 run over the next six minutes to end any hopes of a Sacramento State comeback.
The Hornets made one final spurt in the final minutes and Chris Lange’s three made the score 64-59 with 43 seconds left. Bell, however, made two free throws on the next possession to end the game’s scoring.
Hooks and fellow senior Jimmy White led the Sacramento State offense with 15 points apiece. Lange added 11.
After shooting 61.4 percent in their win over Montana State on Thursday, the Hornets were just 22-of-68 from the floor against the Griz. Sacramento State’s three-point percentage was even lower as the team made 6-of-29 long-range attempts.
Freshman DaShawn Freeman and senior Cedric Thompkins tied for the team lead with eight rebounds. Freeman and Hooks each also added three steals.
Montana relied on Horne who made 7-of-14 field goals, including a pair of threes. Bell was just 4-of-12 from the field but a perfect 7-of-7 at the free-throw line. Criswell also cracked double figures with 11.
Sacramento State returns home on Saturday, Feb. 8, against Northern Arizona. The game will be held at the Hornets Nest and will tip off at 7:04 p.m.
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