MISSOULA — Northern Colorado had no answer for Jamar Akoh on Saturday night.
The Montana big man continued his impressive six-week surge with his most dominant performance since transferring from Cal State-Fullerton.
The 6-foot-8, 253-pound junior bulldozed his way to a career-high 34 points to lead Montana to an 89-80 victory in front of 4,119 at Dahlberg Arena.
Montana junior Jamar Akoh scored 34 points and grabbed eight rebounds Saturday/ UM Athletics
The burly power forward established position on the block and under the basket at will, converting 11 of his 15 field goal attempts and drawing eigth shooting fouls. He sank 12 of his 16 attempts from tbe charity stripe, chipped in eight rebounds and helped Montana secure a 4-0 start to Big Sky Conference play.
Akoh’s performance caps an impressive 10-game stretch that has seen him average 17.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Over his last six games, Akoh is averaging 21.1 points and 9.8 boards per outing.
Northern Colorado earned a 13-11 lead less than seven minutes into the game, marking the first time this season the Griz have trailed in league play. Michael Oguine’s slick sequence that started with a forced turnover and finished with a corner 3-pointer in transition gave UM the lead back, 16-13, with 11 minutes to play. The hosts would not trail again.
Akoh scored 20 points in a first half that saw UM convert 15-of-29 field goal tries and sink all but two of its first 13 free throw attempts. The Grizzlies finished the game having shot 50.9 percent from the floor and 84.8 percent from the stripe (28-of-33).
Ahmaad Rorie, Montana’s leading scorer, struggled to get going offensively initially with reigning Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year Jonah Radebaugh shadowing him. But Rorie scored 12 of 14 second-half points in the final 10 minutes, hitting all eight of his free throws down the stretch to finish with 18 points.
Oguine, who head coach Travis DeCuire has recently described as “banged up”, scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds despite playing 23 minutes. Sophomore Sayeed Pridgett scored 12 points in 24 minutes off the bench.
UM sophomore Sayeed Pridgett/ UM athletics
Montana never trailed after retaking the lead nine minutes into the game despite a strong surge from the Bears. Sharp-shooting senior Andre Spight scored 19 of his team-high 26 points after halftime, hitting five of his six 3-pointers in the second 20 minutes. Radebaugh had one of his best shooting nights, scoring 15 and hitting five of his six tries from beyond the arc. The Bears buried 14-of-26 from deep, including 8-of-14 after halftime.
UNC shot 48.4 percent in the second half and outscored the Griz 52-46 after halftime but the Griz cruised to their sixth win in their last seven nonetheless. UM kept the Bears at bay with a 40-25 advantage on the glass.
UM’s 4-0 start in league play moves the Griz to 11-5 this season. Montana is one of three unbeaten teams in Big Sky play. Montana State posted a 79-68 win over North Dakota to move to 4-0 for the first time in 13 years. Idaho State posted a 64-60 win at Northern Arizona to move to 3-0.
The Grizzlies play at Sacramento State on Thursday night and at Portland State on Saturday to begin a 3-game road stretch. UM plays MSU in Bozeman on January 20.
Photos by Todd Goodrich, UM athletics. All Rights Reserved.
