Bobcats Control the Paint to Garner Road Win at Idaho

Thursday, January 10

Moscow, ID

8 pm

Montana State University

7-8

Idaho

4-12

Team	1	2	F
Montana State	30	47	77
Idaho	21	46	67

Tyler Hall led the Cats with 20 points

Photo by: Andrew Pedersen

1/10/2019 9:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Montana State uses toughness, defense to topple Vandals

By: Bill Lamberty

MOSCOW, Idaho – Montana State coach Brian Fish preached toughness and physicality in the days leading to Montana State's 77-67 win at Idaho on Thursday. His team responded.

The Bobcats out-rebounded Idaho 38-31, out-scored the Vandals in the paint 32-20, and scored 14 second-chance points while holding UI to none. Tyler Hall scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half to lead Montana State (7-8 overall, 4-1 Big Sky). Harald Frey added 19.

"It's been a while since we've won a game with defense," Fish said after his squad held the Vandals to 42% shooting, 31% before the intermission. "Idaho runs as much stuff (offensively) as anyone in the league, and to guard it all is hard. I thought the key was that we won methodically and by playing hard. I thought that was a key."

Montana State led from start to finish. The Vandals drew within three points on two occasions in the middle of the second half, but Hall answered each time with a three-pointer.

"Tyler started making some shots late, and Harry (Frey) was able to close it out from the free throw line," Fish said. Frey made all seven of his free throws, including four in the final minute.

Devin Kirby scored eight points for the Cats, and shared the rebounding lead with Hall, each player snagging seven. Frey dished out seven assists to just one turnover. The Cats shot 456% from the floor, 30% from the arc. MSU turned the ball over only seven times.

The Bobcats led 30-21 at halftime, and the first half's defining characteristic was a five-and-a-half minute dry spell imposed by the Bobcat defense. It ended when RayQuawndis Mitchell, a 26% three-point shooter entering the contest, drilled back-to-back triples to cut the Bobcat lead to 16-12, the first at the 8:40 mark. Montana State led 18-16 with 5:37 to play in the first half when a Harald Frey three-pointer began a 12-4 run to close the first half.

UI's Allen led all first-half scorers with 11 points, one more than his teammates combined. Idaho shot just 31% in the first half, while MSU hit at a 37.5% clip. The teams were even in rebounds at 20, but MSU forced six turnovers while giving the ball away just twice.

The Bobcats won beat Idaho (4-12, 1-4) in Moscow for the first time since 2006. The Cats host league-leading Northern Colorado on Monday at 7 pm in Worthington Arena.

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