In a back and forth rivalry battle filled with physicality, the Bobcats had chance after chance to ignite their largest home crowd of the season.
Montana State went on a 7-0 run to tie the game 36-36 against rival Montana midway through the third quarter. Riley Nordgaard’s blocked shot moved the crowd of 3,526 to the edge of their seats. But the Bobcat women missed back-to-back 3-pointers that could’ve sent the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse fans into a frenzy.
Midway through the fourth quarter, the momentum abruptly swung in Montana State’s favor. Nordgaard provided the spark with her endlessly energetic style, Peyton Ferris provided the finishes in the lane and Lindsay Stockton pounded home the final nails in the coffin as the MSU women road the momentum of the raucous atmosphere to a 61-52 win over the rival Lady Griz in Bozeman on Saturday afternoon.
MSU players garnered tape with MK #8 on their ankles or shoes, honoring Manny Kalfell
“Defensively at the end, the crowd was into it and they were having a hard time communicating,” Ferris said following scoring a team-high 16 points. “When you hear the bleachers shaking in your favor, it’s huge. As soon as we walked onto the court, the curtains that are usually up weren’t and it was filled up up top too. This Cat-Griz in particular, we were playing for a lot more than just ourselves. We had something for Bobcat Nation to bounce back from. This was a big deal for us today.”
At 10 a.m., Montana State hosted a memorial for former wide receiver Manny Kalfell on campus. Kalfell died last Sunday. He was 23. The crowd honored Kalfell with a moment of silence before the game. With a slew of athletes from other sports, including a collection of Kalfell’s former teammates, on hand and a sea of white filling a good portion of the stadium, the Bobcats rode the momentum to their second straight home win over Montana.
“I want to say as a first timer in this rivalry, wow,” said MSU junior Riley Nordgaard, a transfer from Division II Augustana. “You can compare this environement to a sold out Gonzaga. This win was hard-fought but Bobcat Nation, shout out to them. It make the experience that much more phenomenal.”
MSU forward Peyton Ferris splits two UM defenders going to the rack
Montana missed all nine of its field goals in the fourth quarter and shot 26.5 percent overall in losing for the fourth straight time and the fifth time in six outings. The reigning Big Sky Conference regular-season and conference champions fell to 4-5 in Big Sky play, 11-9 overall.
“The fourth quarter is not a good time to not make a basket,” Montana 38th-year head coach Robin Selvig said. “Our defense wasn’t bad. But 26 percent and still lead most of the game, we were probably fortunate, really. You can’t beat a good team shooting 26 percent.
“We have lost three or four really close games lately and that’s the nature of it sometimes. It really doesn’t make a whole lot of difference. Everyone is going to be in Reno (for the Big Sky Tournament in March.)”
Under Selvig, Montana has won 24 conference titles and 21 conference tournament titles. In Selvig’s 38 seasons, Montana has won 856 games. UM has not lost four straight Big Sky games since the 1998-99 season and the four-game skid is just the second of Selvig’s career.
“It’s a rut for sure but luckily, everyone gets to go to the tournament so that’s a good thing,” Montana senior Kayleigh Valley said after scoring a game-high 17 points. “This was no bigger than any other game. They all mean the same. It’s unfortunate to get a loss but luckily, we have the ending tournament.”
UM Forward Kayleigh Valley slide steps into the lane with MSU guard Riley Nordgaard defending
With the score tied at 49 with four minutes to play, Nordgaard darted to grab a rebound, junked past UM senior Hannah Doran and ran through Montana senior McCalle Feller on her way to a coast-to-coast layup. Folllowing the spark, MSU would not trail again.
“It’s interesting Riley’s timeliness,” Binford said. “She makes plays at necessary moments. She does things you cannot teach. I knew coming in she was going to have a ton of energy. The question was how is she going to channel it.”
Ferris scored two buckets in the final 3:22 to finish with a team-high 16 points despite battling foul trouble. The Twin Bridges native and former Montana Gatorade Player of the Year played just 19 minutes.
With 2:21 left, Stockton ripped Haley Vining clean, then drove right at the Lady Griz senior point guard for a layup to put MSU up 55-50. Following another turnover-forcing hustle play by Nordgaard, Stockton used a nasty crossover at half court to beat two Lady Griz defenders before firing a one-handed bounce pass to a streaking Nordgaard for a layup to put Montana State up 58-50 with 1:10 to play.
UM guard McCalle Feller pulls up for three
“That was one of my favorite plays of the game,” said Nordgaard, who finished with 11 points, nine rebounds, five steals and four assists. “She did a little in and out, broke the girl’s ankles and made an easy shot for me. After that, you could see the confidence in my teammates. I was feeling pretty pumped from the crowd.”
Stockton put the game on ice with two free throws to give her Bobcats a 60-51 lead with 35 seconds to play. She shook off a 2-of-9 shooting night finished with 11 points and three assists.
Feller hit three 3-pointers in the first quarter, including a fall-away after curling off a screen on which she was fouled. Her four-point play was part of a 12-point quarter as UM finished the first frame ahead 18-14.
Despite hitting just 2-of-11 shots in the second quarter, the Lady Griz won the quarter 12-11 and took a 30-25 lead to halftime. Montana held MSU senior center Jasmine Hommes, the fifth-leading scorer in the league, scoreless in the first half. Hommes scored five of her seven points during MSU’s 7-0 spurt to tie the game at 36.
Mekayla Isaak converted a pair of layups early in the third period and Vining hit a runner to give UM a 36-29 lead with 7:58 left in the frame. Vining, a Great Falls product, hit a jump shot with 4:18 left in the third, marking Montana’s fifth and final field goal of the game. Stockton hit four free throws as MSU entered the fourth quarter trailing 43-42.
MSU forward Alexa Dawkins gathers in the lane
“Every team has an identity about them and the character of this team is they just find ways even when it’s not particularly pretty,” BInford said. “We really struggled in the first half. Give the Griz credit. They were extremely physical.
“But this team is steady and they have great composure. That comes with experience and the great leadership on this team.”
Valley scored a team-best 17 points before fouling out despite a 2-of-9 shooting night. The Big Sky’s leading scorer netted 13 points at the free throw line. Feller hit 2-of-4 free throws in the final quarter for her only two points following the first.
“We were keying on them and played some cheat defense for lack of a better word,” Ferris said. “Some of the other girls stepped up and made a few. We just kept making them earn points outside of those two.”
Montana State shadowed the Lewistown native with Nordgaard for most of the second half and she finished 4-of-14 from the floor.
“She’s a talented player with a quick step back, a quick shot but I like guarding her,” Nordgaard said. “It’s fun. It’s a challenge for sure. I’ll leave it at that.”
Bozeman product Alexa Dawkins drilled four shots, including a jumper to tie the game 49-49 with less than five minutes to play. Dawkins finished with 10 points, joining Ferris, Nordgaard and Stockton in double figures.
MSU guard Lindsey Stockton on runs the fast break
Montana State’s win coupled with Eastern Washington’s loss to Portland State on Thursday means MSU is back atop the Big Sky standings. Montana State is 15-5 overall. Binford signed a class four years ago that includes Stockton, Dawkins, Hommes, Ferris and junior Margreet Barhoum,. The group is 3-5 against Montana in their careers.
“They are real good,” Selvig said. “They’ve had some good teams. I’ve been doing this a long time (laughs). In the old days, there were some pretty good ones too. But this is a really good team. They have inside, outside, balance, they have experience, they have a senior point guard with Stockton, they have seniors inside, they have depth. There are a lot of good teams in this league and they are certainly one of them.”
Montana State hosts Portland State and Sacramento State next week. Binford hopes the fans return to the Brick to support her Bobcats.
“This one feels really good, particularly with that kind of crowd behind you,” Binford said. “That was our biggest crowd of the year and having a pretty tough start and being able to bounce back in that second half was amazing. It’s a long season but I definitely told our kids we want to enjoy this one because it was such a big thing in your community. But there is a lot of season to be had and we have to get better on Monday.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
