Bobcats Roll Past Minot State

Friday, November 19

5:30 PM

Montana State University

Minot State

Erik Rush and Bobby Howard led MSU past Minot State

Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson

11/19/2010 8:45:14 PM | Men's Basketball

Bobby Howard scores 24 points to lead MSU

By: Bill Lamberty

MSU-Minot State Box Score

Bobby Howard scored 24 points and Erik Rush added 19 to lead Montana State to a 92-67 win over Minot State in Bozeman on Friday.

The Bobcats sealed the win with a high-energy second half, outscoring the Beavers 46-27 after the intermission in large part, MSU coach Brad Huse said, due to better execution. "We didn't execute as well as we'd like in the first half, but I liked how they came out and executed in the second. We played with good focus, and it showed."

The primary statistical difference after the intermission came on the boards, where MSU won the battle decisively after the break. Out-rebounded 21-16 in the first half, MSU grabbed 26 boards to Minot State's 10 in the second.

"That was the big key," Huse said. "They grabbed nine offensive rebounds in the first half, but only three in the second."

The Bobcats shot 52% in each half, and finished the game 10-for-27 from beyond the three-point line. MSU finished with a 42-to-31 rebounding advantage, and turned the ball over only 11 times while taking it away 15.

MSU raises its record to 3-1 with the win, while Minot State falls to 2-4. The Bobcats host Cal Poly of the Big West Conference on Sunday at 7:05 pm in Worthington Arena.