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Patriots Hold Jackets In Check, 78-69
(1/17/07)
Box
Score
DALLAS, TX – Despite a huge
second half, the Montana State-Billings men’s basketball
team dropped their fifth straight contest falling
78-69 to Heartland Conference opponent
Dallas Baptist University Wednesday in
Dallas. The Yellowjackets are 2-13 overall and an even 2-2 in
league play. The win improves the Patriots to 5-10 on the
season and 2-3 in the conference.
The Patriots started off the
game going on a 6-0 run and were up by double digits just 3:05
into the game. Although the Jackets were getting plenty of
shots off, they struggled in the first half going just 8-35 from
the field and 5-25 from behind the arc. It looked like Dallas
Baptist was going to steamroll the Yellowjackets by the end of
the first half holding the 40-24 advantage.
“Some nights the ball just
doesn’t go in the basket,” said Yellowjacket head coach Craig
Carse. “The guys just kept fighting and had some great shots in
the second half. They are a fun team to coach. Watching them
learn and grow and knowing our future is bright keeps us going
when we aren’t getting the wins we hope for.”
Regrouping in the locker room,
the Yellowjackets came out of the gates wanting a ball game.
Jeff Miner (Gresham, OR) scored five of his career-high nine
3-pointers in the second half while teammate
Cody Samuelson (Broadus, MT) knocked down three second half
3-pointers of his own. A basket by freshman
Mike Barton (Havre, MT) at the 12:47 mark brought the
Patriots’ lead down to six.
The Patriots’ Nick Michels hit
a three with 5:20 to play but was answered by the Jackets’ point
guard
Eric Cunningham (Phoenix, AZ) to come within two possessions
of the lead. A Yellowjacket foul with 11 seconds on the clock
sent the Patriots’ Brandon Wash to the line for two where he
connected on both, putting the game out of reach for the
Jackets.
“As I have said before, we
need to work on our foul situation as we are sending the
opponent to the line too many times and is costing us valuable
points,” added Carse. “The guys are playing hard, staying
positive and I know things are going to come around.”
The Yellowjackets were
24-of-67 from the field and 15-of-49 from 3-point range in the
contest. The game was really a tale of two halves. The
Yellowjackets shot 23 percent from the field in the first half
and were an even 50 percent in the second half of play. From
the perimeter, the Yellowjackets were a cool 20 percent in the
first half compared to an efficient 41.7 percent in the second
half. The Jackets were 6-of-11 from the charity stripe in the
game for 54.5 percent.
Miner scored a career-high 29
points on 10-of-27 shooting from the field and 9-of-25 from
3-point range. He also had a career-best four steals in the
game. Cunningham netted 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the
floor and shot a career-high 3-of-7 from long range. Cunningham
also handed out seven assists. Samuelson was 5-of-10 from the
field and 3-of-8 from the perimeter for 13 points. He grabbed
five boards in the game.
The Patriots were led by
Brandon Wash with 20 points. Wash earned his living at the
charity stripe going 8-of-9. He was 6-of-9 from the field and
picked up the double-double with 10 boards. Dwight Coleman had
19 points in the game on 8-of-19 shooting from the field and
3-of-5 from 3-point range. He also had a double-double grabbing
a game-high 15 rebounds.
As a team the Patriots were
28-of-61 from the field and just 4-of-10 from the perimeter.
They were18-of-25 from the free throw line compared to the
Jackets 6-of-11. The Patriots out-rebounded the Yellowjackets
43-31.
The Jackets have a short
turnaround time before hosting Heartland Conference opponent
Lincoln University (3-9, 0-1) on Saturday, January 20. It will
be the first game of a four-game home stand with games scheduled
against league leaser St. Mary’s (8-6, 2-0) on January 24
followed by two games against University of the Incarnate Word
(6-8, 1-1) on January 27 and 28. Tip off for all four games are
scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Games can be heard live at AM 970 KBUL. |
