Bobcats Fall to Denver
12/20/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior Jason Erickson and freshman Nick Dissly keyed a furious second-half comeback, but Denver was able to hold off Montana State for an 81-79 win in Bozeman on Saturday.
Erickson scored 19 points, including seven in the last three-and-a-half minutes, and Dissly had a career-high 17 points to lead the Bobcats. MSU played catch-up for most of the night, and finally caught up when Dissly hit a jumper with 6:40 to play to tie the game at 67. The teams played on even terms for the next five-plus minutes, until Erickson hit a free throw to give MSU its only lead of the second half, 79-78 with 1:25 to play.
Erik Benzel hit the last of his game-high 28 points on a two free throws on Denver's next possession. The Bobcats had two possessions with the opportunity to tie or win, but Frank Brown missed an open 18-footer with 10 seconds left and the 'Cats turned it over with 1.2 seconds to play.
"We did a lot of good things to get ourselves back into the game," said MSU coach Mick Durham, whose team trailed by as many as 12 in the first half. "It just seemed like we couldn't get over the hump, we couldn't get the lead and couldn't get control of the game."
The Bobcats held Benzel, Denver's leading scorer, to just three points in Denver earlier this season, but he lit up the Bobcats on Saturday. "Benzel really showed us what he can do," Durham said. "He had a great night, hit a lot of contested shots, a lot of deep shots."
Dissly had a breakout game for the Bobcats. The outstanding freshman grabbed three boards and had three assists, in addition to his 17 points. Fellow Bozeman High product Danny Faaborg also played well, getting 13 points. "Nick got off to a slow start in the first 17 minutes or so, but he really got it going at the end of the first half, and carried that over into the second half," Durham said. "Danny is playing looser and quicker, and I think he's responded real well to playing some power forward. Defensively and on the boards those two did a good job, also."
MSU plays NAIA foe University of Mary on Monday at 7 pm in Bozeman.
(box score attached as .pdf)
Erickson scored 19 points, including seven in the last three-and-a-half minutes, and Dissly had a career-high 17 points to lead the Bobcats. MSU played catch-up for most of the night, and finally caught up when Dissly hit a jumper with 6:40 to play to tie the game at 67. The teams played on even terms for the next five-plus minutes, until Erickson hit a free throw to give MSU its only lead of the second half, 79-78 with 1:25 to play.
Erik Benzel hit the last of his game-high 28 points on a two free throws on Denver's next possession. The Bobcats had two possessions with the opportunity to tie or win, but Frank Brown missed an open 18-footer with 10 seconds left and the 'Cats turned it over with 1.2 seconds to play.
"We did a lot of good things to get ourselves back into the game," said MSU coach Mick Durham, whose team trailed by as many as 12 in the first half. "It just seemed like we couldn't get over the hump, we couldn't get the lead and couldn't get control of the game."
The Bobcats held Benzel, Denver's leading scorer, to just three points in Denver earlier this season, but he lit up the Bobcats on Saturday. "Benzel really showed us what he can do," Durham said. "He had a great night, hit a lot of contested shots, a lot of deep shots."
Dissly had a breakout game for the Bobcats. The outstanding freshman grabbed three boards and had three assists, in addition to his 17 points. Fellow Bozeman High product Danny Faaborg also played well, getting 13 points. "Nick got off to a slow start in the first 17 minutes or so, but he really got it going at the end of the first half, and carried that over into the second half," Durham said. "Danny is playing looser and quicker, and I think he's responded real well to playing some power forward. Defensively and on the boards those two did a good job, also."
MSU plays NAIA foe University of Mary on Monday at 7 pm in Bozeman.
(box score attached as .pdf)
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