McGHEE SCORES A CAREER-HIGH 30, BUT MEN’S BASKETBALL’S LARGE COMEBACK FALLS JUST SHORT AT MONTANA STATE

2/17/2008

BOZEMAN, Mont. -- Sacramento State nearly erased a 25-point second half deficit and true freshman Hornet point guard Vinnie McGhee, Jr. scored a career-high 30 points, but the team fell just short in an 87-82 loss at Montana State in a Big Sky Conference men’s basketball game Sunday afternoon at Dahlberg Arena.

In a contest that was televised on both Comcast SportsNet West and Altitude Sports & Entertainment, the Hornets and Bobcats provided a highly entertaining game that was not decided until Montana State’s Mecklen Davis knocked down two free throws with three seconds remaining to give the Bobcats an insurmountable five-point lead and provide the game’s final score.

Montana State looked to be in control of the game, taking a 52-37 halftime lead and opening the second half on a 14-4 run to open up a game-high 25-point lead (66-41) with 16:10 remaining. However, the Hornets refused to pack it in, chipping away at the Bobcats’ lead the rest of the half. In fact, after MSU took its 25-point lead, Sacramento State used a 30-11 run over the next 11:16 to trail by just six points (77-71) with 4:54 left in the contest.

Both teams exchanged baskets over the next three minutes until a lay-up from Hornet shooting guard Loren Leath drew the team to within four points (79-75) with 2:02 remaining. However, Montana State was then able to whittle the shot clock all the way down to its final seconds when Hornet senior Clark Woods deflected a pass underneath the basket. That resulted in a scrum under the basket that eventually gave MSU a fresh shot clock after referees ruled that Woods had possession of the ball before losing it out of bounds. MSU then ran the clock down to one second before Divaldo Mbunga converted a back breaking lay-up with 1:03 to play.

Each team then scored on it next two possessions as a pair of free throws by Davis eventually gave the Bobcats an 85-79 lead with 13 seconds left. McGhee quickly ran the ball up the floor and buried a pull-up three-pointer that got the Hornets within three points (85-82) with seven seconds to play. After the Hornets tried frantically to force a turnover on MSU’s ensuing possession, Davis was finally fouled with three seconds to play and knocked down both free throws to put the game away.

McGhee, who has already established himself as the Hornets’ best player, is now arguably the front runner to earn the Big Sky’s Freshman of the Year award. The Oakland, Calif., native was nearly unstoppable all game long, finishing with 30 points, five rebounds and four assists in a game-high 36 minutes. McGhee finished the game 8-for-11 from the field, 6-of-6 from beyond the three-point line and 8-of-8 from the free throw line. He became the first Bobcat opponent to score at least 30
points against Montana State since Aaron McGhee of Oklahoma in 2000.

McGhee had 22 points in the first half before MSU consistently double teamed him in the second stanza. He is now averaging a team-high 14.3 points against Big Sky competition this season and has knocked down 46.2 percent (30-65) of his three-point attempts in conference play.

However, McGhee’s effort was not enough as it could not prevent Sacramento State from falling to 4-20 overall and 2-11 in the Big Sky. With the loss, the Hornets were eliminated from Big Sky Tournament contention, and will not advance to the postseason tourney for just the second time in the last six years. The top six teams in the nine-member league advance to the tournament.

Montana State (15-10, 7-5) was able to avenge a loss to the Hornets earlier this season in Sacramento as the Bobcats improved to 10-1 at home, including 4-1 against the Big Sky inside its friendly confines. Sacramento State, which has enjoyed recent success against Montana State, is still 10-7 against MSU since Jerome Jenkins took over the Hornet head coaching duties in 2000-01.

The Hornets lost for the first time all season when scoring at least 70 points (now 4-1) and outrebounding their opponent (now 4-1). Sacramento State shot 53.1 percent (26-49) from the field, 56.3 percent (9-16) from the three-point line and 80.8 percent (21-26) from the free throw line. The Hornets outrebounded the Bobcats, 28-22, and were able to score 11 second-chance points with the help of 10 offensive rebounds.

Sacramento State’s defensive effort could not stop Montana State’s hot shooting as the Bobcats shot 57.1 percent (28-49) from the field and 52.6 percent (10-19) from the three-point arc. Five Bobcats scored in double figures, comprised of Casey Durham (career-high tying 19, 5-of-8 three-pointers), Mbunga (17), Carlos Taylor (15), Phil Friesen (14) and Davis (14).

The Hornets were also careless with the ball, turning it over 23 times (its third-worst output of the season), and Montana State took advantage, scoring 34 points off those turnovers.

McGhee led a trio of Hornets in double figures that included Woods (13 points, 7-of-7 from the free throw line) and Leath (11 points, two steals). Sophomore Justin Eller added nine points (4-of-6 shooting) and four rebounds, and senior Justin Williams tacked on eight points, four assists and two steals. McGhee’s five rebounds were a team best and his four assists tied a team best.

Sacramento State concludes its three-game road trip with just one game next week - Thursday, Feb. 21, at Northern Arizona. The game will tip at 5:35 p.m. PST. The Hornets have just four games remaining on their schedule, including three conference tilts and a non-conference game at UC Davis.