BILLINGS, Mont. – Using a balanced offensive attack and committing few mistakes, the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team got out to a 15-point lead and didn't look back in its 81-69 win over Black Hills State on Wednesday night.
 
"We set the tone from the start," MSUB head coach Mick Durham said. "It's hard to lead from start to finish once you get that double-digit lead, but for the most part, I was impressed with how we held that lead in the second half."
 
The Yellowjackets' (2-3) four turnovers were the team's lowest since a Feb. 21, 2015 loss against Seattle Pacific; conversely, MSUB scored 23 points off of 14 Black Hills State Yellow Jackets (2-3) turnovers.
 
Carrington Wiggins was MSUB's leading scorer for the second-straight game, scoring 19 points on 6-for-13 shooting from the field. Brent Finn (11 points) and Nicholas Sebastiao (12 points) were the only other starters in double figures, yet the 'Jackets got plenty of help from MSUB-highs from Malik Brikat (12 points, 8 rebounds) and Bilal Shabazz (11 points, 6 rebounds) off the bench.
 
"We had a lot of guys step up," Durham said. "That was Malik's best game and we had Emmanuel Akpan get some minutes. If we can get five or six guys in double-figures and share it, then exactly the way we want to be."
 
QUICK HITS

• Carrington Wiggins was the St. Vincent Player of the Game for his 19 points, six rebounds and four assist statline.
• Damen Thacker chipped in nine points, seven assists and three steals.
• Shabazz's six rebounds were also his career-high in a MSUB uniform.

 
Both teams traded baskets in the opening four minutes before MSUB tied it at eight on an and-one opportunity from Jimmy Brown. This sparked a 15-0 run that essentially put the game out of reach for good. Damen Thacker knocked down a pair of threes in the run, Carrington Wiggins found Malik Brikat in transition, then jumpers from Wiggins and Thacker put the Yellowjackets up 23-8 over the Yellow Jackets with 13:15 left in the half.
 
"Our energy was perfect," Wiggins said. "We had a chip on our shoulder because we dropped a couple of games and we wanted to come out hard and strong. Our energy was great."
 
Although Black Hills State tried chipping away at the deficit, MSUB's bench help keep them at bay. No single player dominated the first half for the Yellowjackets, but three different players went on runs off the bench that helped MSUB keep control of the game.
 
Emmanuel Akpan subbed in and immediately hustled on the boards, yanking away a would-be BHSU rebound and eventually making two quick baskets. Nicholas Sebastiao took over, nailing a three and then driving and drawing contact for a personal 5-0 run of his own that put MSUB up 31-19. Black Hills State would pull within seven points late in the first half, but six points from Shabazz, a basket from Brent Finn and Thacker's elbow jumper as time expired gave MSUB a 42-34 lead at half.
 
"That's what it's all about," Wiggins said. "Coach preaches all the time that if someone's not hitting shots or it's not their night, in a sense, then somebody's gotta step up. It's always the next man up. If we keep that mentality, then we're going to be a great team down the stretch."
 
Black Hills State opened the second half with a three, but that was as close as the Yellow Jackets got from that point forward. MSUB answered with threes from Sebastiao and Finn to put the 'Jackets up 49-37.
 
Midway through the second half, Brikat went to work. The junior transfer from Texas-Permian Basin scored eight of his 12 points in the second half by battling inside, getting to the free throw line. On the other end, Durham said Brikat guarded BHSU star forward Josh Scott the best out of all the 'Jackets.
 
"I thought Malik was really the one guy who could guard Scott; everyone else seemed to struggle," Durham said. "He pretty much made the difference there – especially in the second half. I thought Scott was a little more limited in the second half."
 
Brikat gave MSUB its largest lead of the night, as he scored through contact off a pass from Thacker to put the Yellowjackets up 71-51 with 5:25 remaining. Despite full-court pressure from the Yellow Jackets as the visitors rallied one more comeback attempt, a pair of free throws from Thacker, then four free throws and a dunk from Wiggins put the game away for good.
 
KEY STATS

• Black Hills State's 69 points were its second-fewest of the season.
• MSUB connected on 48.4% of its field goals and 46.7% of its threes – both of which are season-highs.
• MSUB outrebounded BHSU 35-33.

 
UP NEXT: MSUB hosts South Dakota Mines this Saturday at 7 p.m. Livestream and live stat links can be found at the men's basketball schedule page on msubsports.com.