Saturday, December 30
Flagstaff, AZ
5 pm
Montana State University
9-6 (2-0)
76
at
73
Northern Arizona
3-12 (0-2)
1
2
OT 1
F
Montana State
34
30
12
76
Northern Arizona
38
26
9
73
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Keljin Blevins' Career Scoring High Leads Cats Past Northern Arizona
12/30/2017 8:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MSU survives rough shooting night in overtime road win
Montana State rode Keljin Blevins' 26 points to survive and otherwise tough shooting night in a 76-73 overtime win at Northern Arizona on Saturday.
"I thought Keljin was really good tonight," Bobcat coach Brian Fish said, "and we found a way. Our defense kept us in there until we could make some shots."
The Bobcats trailed by as many as 15 in the first half, but used a 22-4 sport around halftime to capture the lead. Tyler Hall scored 16 points, much of it coming at the line. He was 7-for-8 from the stripe, including three shots that helped send the game to overtime.
Northern Arizona had an opportunity to win the game in regulation. MSU led 64-63 with a half-second to play when Torry Johnson missed the second of two free throws. The Lumberjacks finished 18-for-29 from the free throw line, while MSU was 25-for-30.
Blevins began the overtime period by nailing a three-pointer, and also added a layup and blocked shot in the extra time. His career scoring night offset a difficult shooting game by MSU's top scorers, Hall and Harald Frey, but they each contributed big scores. Hall finished with 16 points, and a three-pointer by Frey – who scored seven – with 43 seconds remaining in overtime pushed MSU's lead to five.
"We have a lot of guys who can score," Fish said, "and we saw that tonight. Keljin is really starting to look comfortable, but Tyler hit some big shots, Harry made that three-pointer, Konner (Frey) was good, Zach (Green) was good, Sam (Neumann) had nine points and really rebounded well. I thought a lot of different guys stepped up and made plays."
Fish also pointed to another key area for the Cats. "We turned it over six times and (NAU) turned it over 18 times," he said. "I thought taking care of the ball that well was really important."
The win boosts Montana State to its first 2-0 league start with two road wins since 2004-05, and the Cats now stand 9-6 overall. Northern Arizona is 3-12 overall, 0-2 in Big Sky play. The Bobcats host Northern Colorado on Thursday at 7 pm in Worthington Arena.
"I thought Keljin was really good tonight," Bobcat coach Brian Fish said, "and we found a way. Our defense kept us in there until we could make some shots."
The Bobcats trailed by as many as 15 in the first half, but used a 22-4 sport around halftime to capture the lead. Tyler Hall scored 16 points, much of it coming at the line. He was 7-for-8 from the stripe, including three shots that helped send the game to overtime.
Northern Arizona had an opportunity to win the game in regulation. MSU led 64-63 with a half-second to play when Torry Johnson missed the second of two free throws. The Lumberjacks finished 18-for-29 from the free throw line, while MSU was 25-for-30.
Blevins began the overtime period by nailing a three-pointer, and also added a layup and blocked shot in the extra time. His career scoring night offset a difficult shooting game by MSU's top scorers, Hall and Harald Frey, but they each contributed big scores. Hall finished with 16 points, and a three-pointer by Frey – who scored seven – with 43 seconds remaining in overtime pushed MSU's lead to five.
"We have a lot of guys who can score," Fish said, "and we saw that tonight. Keljin is really starting to look comfortable, but Tyler hit some big shots, Harry made that three-pointer, Konner (Frey) was good, Zach (Green) was good, Sam (Neumann) had nine points and really rebounded well. I thought a lot of different guys stepped up and made plays."
Fish also pointed to another key area for the Cats. "We turned it over six times and (NAU) turned it over 18 times," he said. "I thought taking care of the ball that well was really important."
The win boosts Montana State to its first 2-0 league start with two road wins since 2004-05, and the Cats now stand 9-6 overall. Northern Arizona is 3-12 overall, 0-2 in Big Sky play. The Bobcats host Northern Colorado on Thursday at 7 pm in Worthington Arena.
Team Stats
MSU
NAU
FG%
.307
.429
3FG%
.172
.389
FT%
.833
.621
RB
43
52
TO
6
18
STL
9
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
9
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
7
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
Bobcat Insider TV Show
Thursday, March 03
Inside The Brick (Amin Adamu)
Friday, November 05
Inside The Brick (Nick Gazelas)
Monday, November 01
Inside The Brick (Abdul Mohamed)
Sunday, October 31
