Marcus Colbert continued to pour in points and Tyler Hall proved he can perform in the clutch as Montana State toppled Wyoming on Sunday afternoon.
Colbert scored a career-high 29 points, Hall poured in 25 and the Montana State men’s basketball held on for an 83-79 win over Wyoming in front of 4,207 at Rimrock Arena in Billings.
Colbert scored 25 points in the second half to best his career-high of 27 scored in Friday night’s MSU win over San Jose State. Hall scored 18 of his points after halftime as MSU offset 70 percent second half shooting by the Cowboys and a career-high 36 points from Wyoming senior guard Josh Adams.
“They’re a really good team,” MSU head coach Brian Fish said in a press release. “Josh Adams is a special player. For our team to weather the storm and be able to survive that… We have so much room for improvement. But this was a good performance.”
The teams battled to a 31-30 Wyoming advantage in a solid first half, then got up and down the court in the second half of a back and forth battle. MSU led by as many as nine early in the second half, but the Cowboys stormed back. A layup by Adams started the run. His pair of free throws game the Cowboys a 71-70 lead with 4:44 to play. The teams traded baskets for the next four minutes with neither side leading by more than two. Colbert’s free throws with 47 seconds left put MSU up 81-78.
On the next possession, Adams drew a fouled and went to the line. He converted he first but missed the second as MSU sophomore Zach Green grabbed his 10th rebound of the game. With one second left Colbert hit a pair of free throws to expand the lead to 83-79. Adam’s 45-footer at the buzzer trimmed the lead to one, but Montana State had earned its second win in three days over a Mountain West squad.
MSU senior forward Danny Robison joined Colbert and Hall in double figures, scoring 10 points and grabbing five rebounds in his hometown. Robison earned Gatorade Player of the Year honors four seasons ago by helping lead Billings West to the 2012 Class AA state title.
“Just a special, special day,” Robison said. “I love this town, and love playing here. It was a great environment.”
MSU shot 51.4 percent in the second half, including hitting half of its 14 shots from behind the 3-point arc. Colbert, a senior from Post Falls, Idaho, converted 10-of-18 shots and 2-of-5 from beyond the arc. Hall, a true freshman from Rock Island, Illinois, hit 5-of-9 from beyond the arc in scoring a career high.
Montana State travels to Laramie on Sunday for a rematch with the Cowboys.
