BILLINGS, Mont.
– The Yellowjackets improved to 14-9 and 5-5 in the GNAC after picking up their biggest win of the season. The #25 Saint Martin's Saints (18-5, 7-3 GNAC) fell victim to the 'Jackets for the third straight season in Alterowitz Gymnasium. MSUB led for 93.6 percent of the game, comfortably taking home the 73-65 victory for their third win in a row.
Also highlighting the night at the 19:10 mark was
Jalen Tot connecting on a three pointer to reach the 1,500-career points milestone. Tot previously scored 528 at Dawson Community College and has now amassed 986 points at MSUB which is just 14 points shy of 1,000 points in a Yellowjacket uniform. Also inching closer to career milestones is
Brendon Johnson who sits just 27 points shy of 1,000 in his career, and
Kael Robinson who sits 57 points shy of 1,500 career points.
HEAR FROM FENNELLY: "The guys came out with an edge tonight which was really great to see. Saint Martin's has been playing at a very high level, so you have to be up for the challenge mentally and physically, which our guys certainly did from the jump. They put together a full game offensively and defensively tonight, outrebounding one of the best rebounding teams in the country just really shows where are mindset was. Offensively we shared the basketball at a championship level which you have to do against a great defensive team, and it ultimately led us to a win. Could not be prouder of the guys and go 'Jackets!"
Across the stat sheet the 'Jackets edged the Saints, proving their home court is no easy feat. MSUB outshot Saint Martin's 45-36 as a team from the field, holding them eight percent under their season average (44.2). The Yellowjackets also dominated the glass 43-32 in team rebounds, holding SMU nine rebounds under their average which ranks ninth in the country in rebounds per game. Contributing to the cause was Robinson who tallied a team high of 11 rebounds while also contributing nine points and two assists.
Johnson led the Yellowjackets across the board on the night, leading all scorers with 20 points on 6-9 from the field and 6-7 from the line while also posting nine rebounds, a team high of four assists, and a team high of three steals. Following Johnson was Tot with 17 points, six rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Also in double digits was
Cooper Dewitt who tied his career-high of 15 points on 7-13 from the field while also grabbing nine boards while dishing out a pair of assists, swatting two balls, and collecting two steals.
FIRST HALF
The 'Jackets came out hot in the opening half, surging ahead to a six-point lead in just the first five minutes of play. Following was a quick response from the Saints, making it just a one-point ballgame after scoring on back-to-back possessions. This didn't slow the Yellowjackets though, after Tot connected on a jumper Johnson drew an offensive foul and followed that with an immediate basket, erupting Alterowitz and sending the game into their first media break. Coming out of the timeout, Tot added his 11
th point of the game on another triple to extend their lead to 20-12 at the 11-minute mark. The Saints then went on a 6-0 run of their own but was quickly interrupted from a layup from Dewitt and a huge three pointer from Johnson to keep their 10-point lead. The final six minutes SMU slowly chipped away at their deficit, but it was the Yellowjackets heading into the half with the 34-29 advantage.
SECOND HALF
The Saints kept their late second half momentum going, knotting up the ballgame at 34-all in just 55 seconds of play. Robinson quickly deleted their 5-0 run on five straight points on back-to-back possessions, including an and-one three-point play. At this point in the game the Yellowjackets were dominating non-scoring statistics, showing their off-ball effectiveness by outrebounding the Saints 29-20 and dishing out six more assists. The next five minutes of play were fairly quiet with both squads turning the ball over a total of six times in the stretch. By the 9-minute mark, MSUB had regained a 10-point lead after showcasing great ball movement and finishes from
Jajuan Tot and
Fares Kacem. The back-and-forth ball game continued in the next six minutes of play until the Saints hit a triple to make it a 63-60 ballgame with just two minutes left. The Saints did their best to foul and capitalize on offensive possessions in the final minutes, but MSUB closed the door by shooting a perfect 9-9 from the line to ultimately take the 73-65 victory.
STATISTIC LEADERS
POINTS: Brendon Johnson (20);
Jalen Tot (17)
REBOUNDS: Kael Robinson (11);
Cooper Dewitt (8);
Brendon Johnson (8)
ASSISTS: Jajuan Tot (4);
Brendon Johnson (4)
STEALS: Bredon Johnson (3);
Cooper Dewitt (2)
BLOCKS: Cooper Dewitt (2);
Fares Kacem (1)
THE BUZZ: Cooper Dewitt was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game after tying his career high of 15 points while shooting 7-13 from the field with eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals.
UP NEXT: The Montana State Billings Yellowjacket men's basketball team has their second home game of the week, facing off against the Western Oregon Wolves on Saturday, February 1
st at 2:00 PM in Alterowitz Gym. Live statistics for the matchup can be found
here, and the live stream link can be found
here.
