HELENA, Mont. – Zach Taylor poured in nine field goals and finished with a game-high 29 points as Carroll College defeated Montana State University Billings 71-66 in a preseason exhibition contest Tuesday evening in the Carroll PE Center.
 
Taylor was 9-for-14 from the field including 2-for-5 from downtown and 9-for-11 from the foul line. Oliver Carr also played a key role for the Saints, scoring 19 points on 7 of 14 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line.
 
The Saints improved to 4-1 on the season with the win, while the Yellowjackets remain at 0-0 after the non-counting game.
 
Senior Antoine Hosley topped the bill for MSUB, scoring 23 points on 8 of 20 shooting from the field and 3 of 9 from 3-point range. Sophomore Marc Matthews had 13 points and was 3-for-4 from 3-point range, and he also led his team with seven rebounds. Emmanuel Johnson hauled in six boards for the 'Jackets and scored eight points, and freshman point guard Kendall Denham finished the night with nine points and three assists.
 
MSUB jumped out to an early lead, and held it until midway through the first half. A jump shot by Zayn Kirkendoll made the score 14-12 in favor of the Saints midway through, and capped off a six-point swing for Carroll.
 
Thirteen of Taylor's points came in the first half, and his 3-point field goal with five seconds left sent his team to the locker room with momentum and a 32-23 advantage.
 
Matthews opened the second-half scoring with a trey and Tyler Nelson contributed a bucket to narrow the deficit to four at 32-28.
 
Carroll kept the lead through the second half, but MSUB battled back to cut the score to 54-53 on a field goal by Denham with 6:09 remaining. The 'Jackets pulled within one point again on a Hosley field goal with 5:11 left, but the Saints never relinquished the lead as they closed out the game.
 
The Yellowjackets outrebounded the Saints 32-26 on the game, but were hampered by 13 turnovers while totaling just four assists. Carroll also picked up seven steals on the night compared with three by MSUB, and the Saints finished with five blocks.
 
NEXT UP: MSUB takes on Rocky Mountain College in another exhibition matchup on Nov. 5 inside the Fortin Center on the RMC campus. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.