BILLINGS, Mont. – Led by Damen Thacker and Carrington Wiggins scoring 19 points apiece, the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team made quick work of Yellowstone Christian during its 92-57 exhibition win on Monday night.
 
"We were pretty solid defensively all night," MSUB head coach Mick Durham said. "I definitely think our defense is ahead of our offense – which is definitely understandable with a new team."
 
After shaking off a frenetic start, the 'Jackets found their groove, scored 29 points off 24 turnovers and out-rebounded Yellowstone Christian by a 54-39 margin – including Bilal Shabazz's game-high 10 rebounds in 23 minutes. MSUB held the Centurions to 32.8% shooting on the night.
 
Offensively, 11 different Yellowjackets scored and three were in double-figures. The aforementioned Thacker had the hot hand from deep, as the transfer from the University of Idaho made his first five threes and also added six rebounds and four assists. When he wasn't getting the bench on its feet with his transition dunks, Wiggins got most of his production beating his defenders off the dribble and getting to the free-throw line, where he went a perfect 5-5.
 
"I think Thacker and Wiggins have separated themselves a little bit," Durham said. "They've had back-to-back solid games."
 
"They have pretty good chemistry and they're different," Durham added. "Carrington can score in a variety of range; he's got a midrange jumper and can really get things going in the fast break. Damen shot it well from three tonight, so I think they really complimented each other well. I think having two guys like that who can handle the basketball and score is going to be nice."
 
Center Emmanuel Ajanaku added 12 points and six rebounds, plus Montana State transfer Bilal Shabazz came off the bench with a nine-point, 10-rebound effort.
 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
 
After Wiggins got the 'Jackets on the board first with his bucket in transition, the 'Jackets briefly trailed when Yellowstone's William Thigpen hit a three. The Centurions' lead lasted 22 seconds.
 
On the next possession, Emmanuel Ajanaku found a wide-open Damen Thacker in the corner, who hit his first of five threes. Then the floodgates burst as Thacker got hot from deep and Ajanaku was rewarded for his efforts on the offensive glass with a pair of putbacks. Yellowstone Christian pulled within four with 14:50 to go, but Brent Finn's five quick points and Bilal Shabazz's three-pointer off the bench helped keep the Centurions at bay.
 
Yellowstone Christian went on two runs midway through the first half to pull within two points, but MSUB kicked things into overdrive with transition dunks from Ajanaku, Wiggins and a pull-up, transition three from Thacker gave the 'Jackets a 32-23 lead. Wiggins got the crowd going once more in the closing moments of the first half with another dunk that not only gave him eight first-half points, but also gave MSUB a 43-27 lead – its largest of the night up until that point.
 
Wiggins and Thacker didn't cool off after halftime. The duo opened the second half by scoring MSUB's first 10 points: Thacker started the run with his fourth-straight made three, then Wiggins did it all on the next possession, as he blocked a Centurion jumper, then hustled back in transition to finish a layup through contact and make the ensuing free throw. Finn found Wiggins for another dunk, then Thacker drew a whistle on a three and made two of three free throws.
 
With a 21-point lead at the first media timeout, Durham cycled through his bench for the second half and the second unit delivered.
 
Jaren Fritz sank a baseline jumper off an inbounds play for his first bucket of the night, then Thacker drove and found Sam Elliott for a floater to give MSUB a 64-34 lead. Nicholas Sebastiao checked in threw down an emphatic dunk in transition to put MSUB up 66-37. A pair of dunks from Ajanaku and Wiggins followed as the game unraveled.
 
The latter moments of the second half were nearly as fast-paced as the opening moments of the game. Ajanaku's hook shot with 5:28 to go kickstarted a 14-0 MSUB run to close the game. Tyler Neary put up six quick points, Jo Jones blew by his defender for a few layups and Anders Epperly's three-pointer put the exclamation point on the game with 1:22 to go. Yellowstone Christian got on the board a few times with under a minute to play, but Grant Tully's three closed out the scoring for MSUB to finish off the Centurions 92-57.
 
"All in all, it was nice that we got to split minutes again and play everybody," Durham said. "We're really trying to get a look at everyone when the lights are turned on. I still don't think we have a great feel yet until we get a few more games under our belt. We've got about eight or nine days of practice ahead of us, then we'll get three games in a hurry when we get three games in four days in California."
 
UP NEXT: MSUB begins its season by playing Cal State San Marcos in the Cougars' crossover tournament on Friday, Nov. 12. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. MT. Livestream and live stat links can be found on the men's basketball schedule page at msubsports.com.