Idaho slowed down the game and grinded the Grizzlies into their first Big Sky Conference loss in Missoula on Thursday night.
The Vandals hit 10-of-16 shots after halftime and held Montana to 9-of-28 from the floor in each half in a 63-58 victory in front of 3,733 at Dahlberg Arena.
Idaho sophomore Victor Sanders hit 6-of-10 from the floor, 2-of-5 from beyond the 3-point arc and 13-of-14 from the free throw line for a career-high 27 points. Idaho hit 18-of-24 from the stripe in the second half and 22-of-29 free throws overall.
Idaho overcame 20 turnovers and a 24-22 halftime deficit in dropping Montana to 6-1 in league, 11-7 overall. Idaho enters Saturday’s matinee at Montana State 4-2 in league, 12-7 overall. MSU posted a 85-71 win over Eastern Washington on Thursday. The Eagles play at Montana on Saturday night.
Martin Breunig hit 6-of-11 from the floor and 8-of-9 from the charity stripe in finishing with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Gfeller hit four of his 12 3-point attempts in scoring 14 points. Walter Wright finished 3-of-11 from the floor in scoring nine points. Wright also grabbed six rebounds and dished out five of Montana’s 14 assists. Freshman Michael Oguine finished 1-of-7 from the floor but led Montana with four of the Grizzlies’ 10 steals.
Idaho used the first 4:15 of the second half to go on a 12-0 run to take a double-digit advantage. The lead swelled to 44-29 with 10:46 to play on a Chad Sherwood 3-pointer.
Wright’s only made 3-pointer with 3:31 to play cut the Idaho lead to 52-48. A pair of Breunig free throws capped a 16-3 Montana run to cut the Idaho lead to 52-50. Sanders answered with five straight points, including an old-fashioned 3-point play. His jumper with 1:55 to play gave Idaho a 57-50 lead.
Breunig converted a dunk, was fouled and made the free throw to cut the Vandals’ lead to 59-55 with 33 seconds left. Gfeller’s 3-pointer with 22 seconds left shaved the Idaho lead to 60-58. But Sanders hit two free throws, Gfeller missed a 3-point try and Ty Egbert hit the final free throw as Idaho snapped UM’s seven-game losing streak.
North Dakota 101, Northern Arizona 59 — North Dakota (9-9, 4-3 BSC) started the game on a 12-0 run and never trailed en route to a 42-point victory. The UND win marked the largest margin of victory over a Division I opponent for the Fighting Hawks since moving to that level prior to the 2008-09 season. The Lumberjacks (3-14, 1-5 BSC) dropped their third straight. UND junior Corey Baldwin led all scorers with 22 points, equaling a career-high.
NAU was led by Kris Yanku with 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting.
Northern Colorado 90, Southern Utah 80 – Northern Colorado (6-13, 3-4 BSC) started off its road trip with a 10-point win at Southern Utah (4-12, 2-4 BSC). Jordan Wilson led the Bears with a game-best 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting. Jeremy Verhagen added 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Trey Kennedy and Race Parsons each had 19 points to lead the Thunderbirds while Trayvon Langston led SUU on the glass with six boards.
