SANTA BARBARA, Cal.- The Montana State University Billings Men's Basketball team (1-1) faced off against the University of Hawaii at Hilo (3-2) on day two of the GNAC vs PAC West Crossover at Westmont.
Luke Fennelly picked up his first win as head coach of the MSUB Men's Basketball team with a big victory over one of the best teams in the west. The Yellowjackets bested the Vulcans with a final score of 77-70 to give the 'Jackets their first win of the season.
"Couldn't be prouder of the guys fighting to get a win today against a good Hilo team," said head coach
Luke Fennelly. "They responded the correct way after a tough loss and had multiple guys step up in crucial moments to secure a great team win."
Bryce Whitaker started off the first half with a bang after a tough layup to get ahead 2-0 early. The game was a back-and-forth battle until the Vulcans got a hot streak behind Zoar Nedd who had three triples to help get them ahead 12-5. It was then where
Famous Lefthand would check into the game and start writing his resume for the night. Behind Lefthand and
Zharon Richmond the 'Jackets were able to make the ground back and take the lead 26-25 late in the second half after a dagger three by hometown kid
Zharon Richmond. From there the 'Jackets extended their lead and ended the half with a
Steven Richardson three and went into half time up 35-28.
The Vulcans came out hot in the second half going on an 8-0 run to tie up the game at 35 apiece. From there it was back-and-forth until 9:17 in the second half when
Ky Kouba hit arguably the biggest three pointer of the game to put the 'Jackets up 54-50. After the Kouba three the Yellowjackets were able to hold and extend the lead for the entirety of the game.
Jalen Tot came alive in the second half after another big triple for his 12
th point of the game and boosted the MSUB lead to double digits. After a pair of free throws late in the second half by Richmond and Tot the game was over. The Yellowjackets pulled out the 77-70 win to give Fennelly the first win in his head coaching career.
Throughout the night the 'Jackets lead almost every category across the board. MSUB capitalized on points off turnovers 23-17 over the Vulcans, had more second chance points, and more bench points thanks to Lefthand for the 'Jackets. An impressive seven-point win didn't feel that way as there were 14 lead changes in the game, but the Yellowjackets offense was too much for the Vulcans to handle. MSUB shot an impressive 52.7 percent from the field, 52.2 percent from three, and shot nearly 70 percent from the three-point line.
Zharon Richmond ended the night with 14 points and sits just 10 points shy of 1,000 career points which would put him in the top-25 of career points in the MSUB Men's Basketball career record books.
KEY PERFORMANCES:
Jalen Tot – 17 PTS (6-11 FG, 4-7 3PT), 3 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL
Zharon Richmond – 12 PTS (3-8 FG, 2-4 3PT, 4-5 FT), 3 REB, 1 STL
Steven Richardson – 7 PTS (3-7 FG, 1-2 3PT), 4 REB, 4 AST, 4 STL
Daniel Moody – 13 PTS (5-10 FG, 2-5 3PT), 5 REB, 2 AST
THE BUZZ: Famous Lefthand was selected as the Intermountain Health Player of the Game after posting 14 points (6-8 FG, 2-3 3PT), and 4 rebounds off of the bench for the 'Jackets.
UP NEXT: Yellowjacket Men's Basketball will return home for the first Rimrock Rivalry basketball matchup of the season. MSUB and Rocky Mountain College will face off on November 15
th at the Fortin Center at 7:30 PM.
