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BILLINGS, Mont. – Playing a top-25 team can be a daunting task, and if the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team was intimidated, they did not show it Thursday night as they tangled with the 18^th-ranked Seawolves of the University of Alaska Anchorage, dropping a physical game 80-72 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action.
 
The Yellowjackets fall to 7-6 on the season and are now 2-3 in league action after the spirited game, while the Seawolves improve to 10-2 and a perfect 4-0 in the GNAC.

"I have to give a lot of credit to Anchorage," said head coach Jamie Stevens. "They played extremely well tonight; they made shots and came up with some big loose balls down the stretch. We just aren't at their level right now, but this was a good tell-tale of where we are.

"We have 13 games and 50+ days to get better. Whether we can reach the level of the top teams in the GNAC will be determined over that time period."
 
As a team, MSUB managed to hit on just over 40% (24-59) of their shots from the field as three players recorded double-digit point totals by the final buzzer. David Arnold accumulated a team-high 18 points as he was 3-7 from the field, but went to the free throw line 12 times and converted 11 of those opportunities. Arnold also added four assists and two steals while corralling in a team-second-best four rebounds.
 
Just behind Arnold senior guard Antoine Proctor added 15 points that included sinking three three-pointers. The Washington, D.C. native swiped the ball three times and Taylor Stevens added 14 points to the Yellowjackets' total.
 
The nationally-ranked Seawolves hit on an impressive 59.5% (25-42) of their looks from the field that included a 62.5% (15-24) performance in the opening half of play.
 
Reigning GNAC Player-of-the-Week Taylor Rohde led all scorers by sinking nine of his 13 shots from the field as part of his 25 points. Rohde just missed out on a double-double as he had nine rebounds that included six off the defensive glass.
 
Travis Thompson was the only other player to record double-digit points as he had 16 point off a 4-5 performance from the floor and a 6-7 showing at the charity stripe.
 
MSUB opened the game on a 7-3 run in the opening two minutes of play, showing they were not daunted by the visiting team's national-ranking. But Anchorage was able to knot the score three minutes later off a Kyle Fossman jumper, and aside from an MSUB one-point lead off a pair of Robert Mayes free throws a couple minutes later, the Seawolves would never trail again.
 
MSUB was able to keep the game close for the most part aside from a brief 13-point lead with six minutes remaining in the first half and a similar lead in the second stanza, but the Yellowjackets trimmed the lead down to just seven points (39-32) by the final buzzer of the opening stanza.
 
Anchorage came out of the break fresh and ready to play, taking advantage of a seemingly flat Yellowjacket squad to extend the lead back out to double-digits as Fossman sank a trey from the left side of the court.
 
However coach Stevens' team did not give up, applying stiff pressure to the Seawolves who turned the ball over 10 times in the second half compared to MSUB's two second stanza turnovers.
 
With just under four minutes remaining in regulation, Emery Henning deftly laid the ball off the back glass and into the hoop to cut the lead to single-digits (67-59) and before long, the Yellowjackets were breathing down Anchorage's neck with just a four-point (71-67) deficit after Henning sank a pair of free throws.
 
However, that would be as close as MSUB would come to UAA as the Seawolves regained their composure and held on in the closing minutes to claim the conference game 80-72.
 
After turning the ball over just twice in the second stanza, the Yellowjackets were able to out-score the Seawolves 20-12 off turnovers and 16-6 off second chance looks.
 
As a team, MSUB hit on 81% (17-21) of their shots from the free throw line in the game, but were out-rebounded by UAA 33-25.
 
The Yellowjacket men will be back in action Saturday evening when the Nanooks of the University of Alaska Fairbanks will travel to Billings. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.