MISSOULA, Montana — As Griz senior Josh Vazquez drilled a transition 3-pointer and held three fingers in the air, Montana State head coach Matt Logie called a time out.
Before Aanen Moody made it to the Griz huddle for a quick breather for a Montana team in midst of another offensive onslaught against their rival, he had to go egg on the UM student section. After all, he only has a few more times to play to the Dahlberg Arena crowd.
“I was trying to keep the crowd engaged and we had a great sixth man in terms of the people who showed out and gave energy, so my intention was to keep going that last 12 minutes of the game,” Moody said with a smile.
It’s been an unorthodox journey for this group of Griz seniors, both in terms of their individual careers and within the scope of the rivalry matchups against the Bobcats. Although Travis DeCuire is 14-4 in his 10 seasons leading his alma mater against the ‘Cats, Montana State won three of four against the Griz over the previous two seasons under the guidance of a favorite son.
But Danny Sprinkle coaches in Logan, Utah now. And this group of Griz seniors, playing in their third-to-last home games of their wide-ranging careers, wanted to make a statement against the rivals. They did exactly that, ripping Montana State for the second time this season, following up January’s 87-77 win in Bozeman with an 88-69 slashing on Saturday evening.
Jaxon Nap hit a 3-pointer just before the first half buzzer to bring the crowd to its feet as the hosts entered the locker room up 40-30.
When Vazquez banged home his fourth 3-pointer about eight minutes into the second half, Moody had to revel in the moment at least briefly on the north side of Dahlberg Arena.
His team had a 17-point lead, all the momentum and 12 minutes left to complete a rivalry sweep in dominant fashion. Moody wanted to make sure to soak in the finality of the stretch run of his senior season.
“Playing in this one last time, it was amazing,” Moody said. “The outcome of it, getting the win, the way that we did it too…we had a long week of practice and we had a lot of intentions 8we wanted to set for this game. And we achieved our goals not just on the scoreboard but on the hustle chart.”
Less than two minutes later, Moody lined up an uncontested 3-pointer in the corner and swished it. On the next possession, he converted an old-fashioned 3-point play, ensuring that the rout was on for the hosts.
Despite Eddie Turne’s best efforts (18 points), Montana never let up, earning a second straight decisive rivalry win to move to 8-5 in league play front of 5,704 at Dahlberg Arena on Saturday night.
“Fun. They are always fun when the crowd comes with high energy,” DeCuire said. “It was an emotional win for us. We talked about being emotionally engaged but also be stable at the same time because we knew there would be some lulls in this game.
“I thought this was probably as well as we have played in this matchup in a long time if not in all of our games in terms of getting off to a good start and sustaining it for 40 minutes. I thought our guys were locked in.”
BOX SCORE
Vazquez, Moody, and Montana’s other seniors led the way. Vazquez, a smooth guard from Southern California who has played a variety of roles during his five seasons at UM, hit four triples and finished with 15 points.
Dischon Thomas, a transfer from Colorado State before last season, dominated his matchup on both ends, rolling up 20 points and grabbing 10 rebounds while altering several shots at the rim.
Brandon Whitney, the rare four-year starter in this strange new landscape of college hoops, got the Griz going early, scoring MSU’s first two buckets before getting into foul trouble. He battled through it and effectively harassed MSU all-conference point guard Robert Ford III. The Bobcats’ top returner scored 30 points in MSU’s 87-77 loss to the Griz in Bozeman. Saturday, Ford finished 3-of-10 from the floor and scored nine points. Whitney also dished out 7 assists and scored a pair of buckets in the final 90 seconds to push the lead to 20 and finish with nine points of his own.
Laolu Oke, a former Division II transfer who played four years at Metro State before joining Montana, continued showing his improvements. He had 10 points, 12 rebounds and a pair of blocks in 26 minutes of action. He had eight rebounds offensively as UM piled up 15 offensive boards.
“When you have two guys with double doubles in the same night, it says a lot about how you are playing defense,” DeCuire said.
And Moody was his effervescent, flamboyant self, blowing kisses to the crowd, pandering to the Griz bench and rolling his way to 29 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including five 3-pointers.
“I love them,” DeCuire said, referring to his seniors. “I think what I love most about these guys is they allow me to challenge them, they allow me to coach them. They allow me to raise the bar and have high expectations for their performance every day.
“They’ve been challenged as much their entire careers this week. And they responded. That’s what makes this fun for me individually and it’s fun for them, too, when they come together for a win like this.”
Sam Lecholat hit a 3-pointer with 6:12 left in the first half, the fourth of the half by the Bobcats, to cut the lead to 27-26. The Griz ended the first half on a 13-4 run capped by Nap’s dagger.
After halftime, it was more of the same as Montana never let up. In Bozeman, the Griz shot 65 percent and never let the Bobcats keep pace. Saturday, Montana shot 47 percent and hit 13 3-pointers, rolling up 18 assists on the way to earning the rivalry sweep.
Montana State head coach Matt Logie coached in his first rivalry game in Missoula and his second overall. Yet he’s known DeCuire most of his life. Logie’s grandfather Ed Pepple was DeCuire’s high school basketball coach at Mercer Island Prep in Seattle.
Logie gave credit to Montana’s chemistry, experience and veteran performances following the loss.
“They are very experienced and have connectedness,” Logie said. “They have well-defined roles and everyone knows who they are. And this is not the first year they have been in those roles. It’s the second if not third. They have a system that they’ve been executing and working on that entire time. They are disciplined and well coached. Good teams make you pay when you mistakes and certainly, they did that tonight.”
Montana has had some bright moments and some perplexing lulls this season. But the Griz have looked sharp against some of the Big Sky’s best and decisively dispatched of their rivals twice.
And the Griz seniors are sharply focused on finishing their final season together in fine fashion.
“We just have to keep playing hard and keep playing for one another,” DeCuire said.
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
