BILLINGS, Mont. – Jordan Overstreet and Stephen McCall combined to score more than half of their team's points as the University of Montana Western defeated host Montana State University Billings 72-62 Friday evening in Alterowitz Gym.
Overstreet led all scorers with 20 points, shooting 5-for-8 overall from the field and 7-for-8 from the foul line. McCall complemented him with 17 points on 7-for-13 from the floor, and the Bulldogs shot a strong 59.5 percent overall on the night (25-for-42).
Dexter Williams was the top rebounder for UMW (5-3), grabbing seven boards and adding 11 points.
For MSUB (1-8), senior
Antoine Hosley paced the squad with 18 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the floor. He also added two rebounds and three assists. Sophomore
Marc Matthews converted four 3-pointers and totaled 14 points, and
Austin Hudson scored 13 and had seven rebounds for the 'Jackets.
The Yellowjackets shot 36.5 percent from the field (19-for-52), and 63.6 percent from the free-throw line (14-for-22). Freshman guard
Kendall Denham dished out seven assists on the game, and MSUB had 15 total on the evening. Senior
Tyler Nelson also grabbed four boards for MSUB, which was outrebounded 25-20 in the game.
"Montana Western played really well and hit some big time shots tonight," said MSUB head coach
Jamie Stevens. "Some of those shots in the second half were daggers, but I thought our guys shared the ball and we had good looks. We didn't shoot it great tonight and in the end it probably cost us."
Matthews got the scoring started with a three and scored six of the Yellowjackets' first eight points. Denham knocked down a three several minutes later, as MSUB held on to an early 16-12 lead.
The 'Jackets maintained their lead into the late minutes of the first half, but a three by Kris Castro kept the score close at 25-23 with six minutes until the break. McCall followed with another trey for the Bulldogs, who took a 30-27 edge.
With less than a minute remaining in the first, Overstreet knocked down a shot from long range and gave UMW its largest lead of the night to that point at 37-30.
The Bulldogs extended their lead to nine points early on in the second, but the 'Jackets worked their way back into it as Hudson made a layup to cut the deficit to six points at 15:56 left. Hosley completed a three-point play a minute later and the spread was down to one at 43-42.
McCall hit a mid-range jumper inside of eight minutes, and the Bulldogs capitalized on a turnover for two more points to make the score 54-47.
A strong take to the hoop by Hosley followed by another three from Matthews cut the score to 58-54, but UMW responded with a bucket to keep ahold of the lead. The Bulldogs pulled away into the closing minutes, staying ahead by more than two possessions down the stretch to seal the victory.
Although the 'Jackets only held a slight advantage in turnovers 12-10, MSUB capitalized on its opportunities with 16 points off of turnovers compared to just four by UMW. The Yellowjackets also had an advantage in second-chance points, 10-5, and outscored the Bulldogs off the bench 26-13.
The Bulldogs outworked the 'Jackets in the paint, scoring 28 points down low while MSUB had 20.
NEXT UP: The 'Jackets welcome former players back to Alterowitz Gym for the annual Alumni Game, set for Saturday evening at 5 p.m. The game will be part of a doubleheader with the MSUB women's basketball team, and attendees who bring a toy to donate to the Toys for Tots program will receive half-price admission for either of Saturday's games.
"The nice thing is that we get to come back and practice tomorrow, and we are excited about getting prepared for Chaminade next week," Stevens said. "We also have the chance to play our alumni team, and it is another chance for our guys to go out and play a 40 minute game and hopefully have some success."
