The story of Montana’s season could be starkly different if the Grizzlies had higher levels of execution in the final minutes of Big Sky Conference games.
Instead, the Grizzlies entered Thursday’s game at Portland State fresh off an 11-day break that resulted in the cancellation of its rivalry series against Montana State sporting a 3-5 conference record and still searching for answers. Two of those losses came by one point each at Southern Utah in the second and third games of this unorthodox season back in December.
Another loss came at the buzzer thanks to a clutch Bodie Hume bucket as Northern Colorado won its third straight in Missoula. And in its last Big Sky game leading up to Thursday, the Griz lost 89-83 in double overtime at Sac State.
So when Montana found itself engaged in a close yet ugly battle against the 10th-place Vikings, it seemed like the same result would eerily repeat.
And when Robby Beasley missed an attempt at the rim with less than 10 seconds left to play, giving PSU possession and a trip to the free throw line with a 54-51 lead, it seemed like the Griz would be the team sitting in second-to-last place in the Big Sky Conference standings.
Instead, John Hall missed the front end of a one-and-one with eight seconds left in regulation, Ian Burke missed the putback with four seconds left and Montana got one last chance.
Beasley, a former 3-star recruit who Montana beat Nevada among others to secure, hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game as time expired to tie the game at 54 and force overtime.
In the extra period, Brandon Whitney redeemed himself after missing a pair of free throws with less than 25 seconds in regulation by scoring six points. The Griz nailed all 10 of their free throw attempts. And Montana emerged with a crucial 70-64 overtime road win over Portland State despite all the struggles the Grizzlies endured Thursday night at the Stott Center.
“Everything that could happen happened. But we won and that’s what is amazing about it,” Montana seventh-year head coach Travis DeCuire said after his team won in overtime for the first time since 2017. “It’s good to see the guys grit it out and find a way to make it happen.
“The fortunes hadn’t been on our side of the coin up to this point so it’s a positive, a growing experience on a positive, which we needed. And we will take what we can get.”
Montana trailed the game for more than 37 minutes, including all but the final second of the second half. Yet the Griz hung tough by getting stops when absolutely needed while also beating the hyperactive Vikings on the glass, earning a 41-37 rebounding advantage. UM sophomore Derrick Carter-Hollinger led that charge, snaring eight boards.
Beasley finished tied with Whitney, a fellow freshman, for team-high honors with 14 points. Each received starts, as did junior guard Cam Parker and junior post Mack Anderson in an effort to combat PSU’s pressing, chaotic style.
The Griz shot 45.3 percent from the floor and 40 percent from beyond the arc. PSU shot 36.2 percent from the floor, 6-of-29 from beyond the arc and leading scorer James Burke finished with eight points, six below his season average. But 24 UM turnovers helped the Vikings keep the Griz at bay for most of the game.
“We knew we were beating ourselves for 37 minutes,” DeCuire said. “We were giving them so many extra possessions. But what we didn’t do was lack effort. And we kept grinding. That was one of the things that has been a focus of ours the last two weeks: playing through the adversity, having each other’s backs and enjoying others’ success.”
DeCuire has continued to tinker with his lineup all season — the Griz roster features nine new players — and Thursday, he reinserted Kyle Owens in the starting lineup to go along with Beasley, Parker, Anderson and Whitney.
Senior Michael Steadman, a preseason All-Big Sky selection despite never playing in the league after transferring from San Jose State and sitting out last season, came off the bench and scored 12 points in 16 minutes. Freshman Josh Bannan, a starter for most of the first half of the season, scored two points in 16 minutes. Sophomore guard Josh Vazquez scored six points, all at the free throw line, before fouling out.
“Some of it is the guys we felt were playing tougher during our trip to California, we thought that would be important to emphasize one, to motivate the others but two, toughness is what it takes to win in chaos,” DeCuire said. “Portland State wants to play in chaos and when you are not used to playing a chaotic because it’s not your style, it’s hard because you can’t implement it in practice to prepare for it. It took us a while to settle down.”
Montana crept one game closer to .500 in league play entering Saturday’s matinee rematch at Portland State. PSU had beaten the Grizzlies three of the last four games before Thursday. Now the Griz take a little momentum into the weekend.
