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Scoreboard

Montana State University Billings Athletics

Composite Calendar
owens
94
Winner Mont. St. Billings MSUB 14-4,3-2 Great Northwest
92
Western Wash. WWU 8-9,2-4 Great Northwest
Winner
Mont. St. Billings MSUB
14-4,3-2 Great Northwest
94
Final
92
Western Wash. WWU
8-9,2-4 Great Northwest
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Mont. St. Billings MSUB 38 56 94
Western Wash. WWU 43 49 92

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Hayden Foltz, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications

Clutch Finish Carries MSUB to 94-92 Road Win at Western Washington

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Montana State University Billings men's basketball team delivered a resilient road performance Thursday night, outlasting Western Washington 94-92 in a thrilling Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup inside Sam Carver Gymnasium. The Yellowjackets improved to 14-4 overall and 3-2 in GNAC play, while the Vikings slipped to 8-9 (2-4 GNAC).
 
In a tightly contested battle that featured six lead changes and eight ties in the second half alone, MSUB found separation late behind timely shooting, interior dominance, and clutch free throws. The Yellowjackets shot an efficient 54 percent from the floor, controlled the paint by a 50-26 margin, and received a strong spark from their bench, outscoring WWU 31-13.
 
HEAR FROM COACH FENNELLY: "What a huge gritty win from our guys. We've hit adversity the last couple weeks with injury and sickness, but we stress that you just have to keep fighting. The guys have stayed together and have done just that. Rhyse and Brandon really stepped up tonight, but we got contributions from everyone which you have to have in an environment like WWU. Proud of our effort form start to finish and ultimately executing late to pull out the win."
 
Miles Gurske once again paced MSUB, posting his second consecutive 20-point outing with 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the free-throw line, along with five rebounds and a team-high six assists. Brandon Tchouya followed with 19 points and a team-best seven rebounds, while Jakob Milling added 18 points and six boards.  
Jonas La Tour finished with 14 points, while Croix Cox chipped in 11 to round out five Yellowjackets in double figures while combing for an impressive 63 percent field goal percentage. Redshirt freshman Rhyse Owens earned Player of the Game honors after contributing across the stat sheet, totaling seven points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals in key moments.
 
Game Flow
Looking for revenge after a dramatic 24-point comeback loss at Simon Fraser earlier in the week, MSUB came out aggressive as Cox opened the scoring with a dunk. After a brief scoring drought to begin the game, La Tour knocked down his first three-pointer at the 16:27 mark to give the Yellowjackets a 5-0 edge. Western Washington responded quickly, using a 9-2 run to grab its first lead before extending the advantage to 13-10 midway through the opening half.
 
The Vikings continued to control the tempo, pushing their lead to as many as nine points over the next several minutes. MSUB answered with a decisive 11-2 run, sparked by a Cooper Tyson tip-in and capped by a Milling three-pointer to knot the game at 26. Once again, Western Washington countered, rattling off a 9-1 stretch to regain an eight-point cushion with under five minutes remaining.
 
The Yellowjackets closed the half strong, piecing together a 7-0 run to pull within one at 35-34. The final minutes featured back-and-forth play, but a late Viking three-pointer sent MSUB into the locker room trailing 43-38 at halftime.
 
MSUB wasted little time erasing the deficit after the break. Gurske opened the half with a pair of free throws, followed by a La Tour floater and a Cox layup to give the Yellowjackets a 44-43 lead less than two minutes in. La Tour continued his strong play early in the half, accounting for five straight MSUB points, though WWU answered with a 9-5 run to reclaim a three-point edge with just over 15 minutes remaining.
 
The middle portion of the second half was tightly contested, with neither team able to gain more than a one-possession advantage. At the 11:50 mark, Tchouya tied the game before La Tour followed with a bucket to put MSUB ahead 61-59. The teams continued to trade blows over the next several minutes, remaining deadlocked at 71 before another series of lead changes ensued.
 
With the game tied at 82 and just under three minutes to play, WWU's Aidan Rice added his 32nd point of the game by  knocking down a timely basket to give the Vikings a two-point edge. Milling then answered a Viking score with a clutch three-pointer, swinging the momentum once again in MSUB's favor. Tchouya extended the lead with a tip-in and two free throws, pushing the advantage to 89-84 with 1:09 remaining. Western Washington made a final push in the closing minute, but a pair of Tchouya  free throws in the final seconds sealed the victory, completing a hard-fought 94-92 win.
 
STAT LEADERS
Points: Miles Gurske (20)
Rebounds: Brandon Tchouya (7)
Assists: Miles Gurske (6)
Steals: Rhyse Owens (2)
Blocks: Jakob Milling (2)
 
THE BUZZ: Rhyse Owens was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game after posting a career high seven points with three rebounds, two assists, and two steals in just nine minutes of work.
 
UP NEXT: The Montana State University Billings men's basketball team returns home for a two-game stretch against Northwest Nazarene on January 15th at 7:30 pm and Central Washington on January 17th at 4:15 pm in Alterowitz Gym.
 
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