Box Score

BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings men's basketball team got out to an early lead and controlled the first half of Thursday night's home Great Northwest Athletic Conference game against Central Washington University, but the Wildcats were able to come back in the second half to claim the 99-89 win over the Yellowjackets inside Alterowitz Gymnasium.
 
With its second loss in a row, MSUB is now 13-9 overall and 8-6 in the league while Central Washington improves to one over .500 at 11-10 with a 5-8 record in the GNAC.
 
“Once again we jumped on them early only to give the lead away,” said first-year head coach Jamie Stevens. “They wore us down with dribble penetration and offensive rebounds. For us to beat a team that plays up and down like that, as well as against the athletes they have, we need to either play better or change our style of play.”
 
The Yellowjackets had a good game from the floor as they hit on 47.2% (25-53) from the field that included hitting nearly 60% (16-27) of their looks in the opening stanza of play. But a 9-26 shooting performance in the second half that included hitting only one of 10 attempts from behind the three-point arc derailed MSUB's ability to hold onto the lead.
 
Senior guard Antoine Proctor had a game-high 30 points that included hitting 15 of his 16 free throw attempts to lead the Yellowjackets. He also added six rebounds and three assists.
 
Fellow seniors Taylor Stevens and Robert Mayes each finished the game with double-digit point totals as well. Stevens ended the game with 17 points off a 4-7 performance and was a perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe while Mayes went 4-6 from the field and 5-6 from the free throw line. Mayes ended the night with a double-double as he matched his points-total with 13 boards.
 
Central Washington played a very balanced game as they hit on 54.8% (34-62) of their shots from the field. The Wildcats also made the most of MSUB's 22 turnovers, converting them into 33 total points.
 
Six different Wildcats ended the contest in double-digits. Lacy Haddock and Jody Johnson each finished the game with 16 points while Jordan Coby and Toussaint Tyler each added 15 points. Roby Clyde and Brandon Magee were the final pair in double-digits with 13 points each.
 
Despite going up by as many as nine points several times in the opening stanza, the Yellowjackets entered halftime clinging to a four-point (46-42) lead.
 
CWU's Clyde quickly went to work to change that with a dunk just 30 seconds into the second half, and from there, it would be all Wildcats. MSUB was able to prolong giving up the lead for good during the early-going of the second half, but Jody Johnson's jumper with 11:32 left in the game gave Central Washington the lead for good.
 
The Wildcats would go on from there to slowly extend their lead out to the final 10 points despite several late attempts at a come-back by the 'Jackets.
 
MSUB will now turn their focus to hosting Northwest Nazarene University on Saturday for a 7 p.m. contest. The last time the Yellowjackets tangled with the Crusaders, the 'Jackets left Nampa with a 94-75 road-victory.