grizzlyjournal

Beck, Ena lead Lady Griz to 54-48 win over Northern Arizona

The Lady Griz got their first lead of the second half when senior guard Lauren Beck hit a jumper in the key with 3:37 remaining for a 44-43 Montana lead over the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks. It was a lead they would keep for good en route to a 54-48 Big Sky Conference victory over the Jacks before a raucous crowd of 3555 at Dahlberg Arena Saturday.

The win boosts the Lady Griz into a tie for second with Portland State at the halfway mark of conference play. The Vikings edged league-leader Eastern Washington Saturday.

Junior forward Sarah Ena scored 17 points, despite battling constant double-team pressure from NAU, while Beck added 15 on a variety of dribble-enter drives for pull-up jumpers over the collapsing Lady Jack defense.

But the Jacks – sparked by the stellar shooting of freshman guard Amy Patton, who scored 17, and reserve guard Caty Huntington, who scored 11 – forged a 27-21 halftime lead with 6-for-15 three-point bombs for 40 percent shooting from beyond the arc.

PHOTOS: Montana junior forward Sarah Ena (top) posts up against NAU double-team defense in second half action. Ena, who scored 17 points, was fouled on the shot. (Middle) Senior guard Lauren Beck scores two of her 15 points against NAU defender Jenna Galloway in second half action. (Bottom) Senior center Shadra Robison posts up against NAU pressure in first half action. Robison had seven rebounds and seven points in 20 mnutes of acstion.

NAU maintained its lead well into the second half, despite Montana’s masterful zone defense, which held the Jacks to 28.1% in the second half and 32 percent for the game. More importantly, the Lady Griz limited NAU to only two treys (2-for-15) in the second frame.

The game was marked by pugnacious defensive efforts from both teams. The Lady Griz had 12 steals and forced 16 NAU turnovers, but committed 17 of their own against the Jacks, who had six steals.

“It was physically demanding and I think mentally it was even tougher,” said Beck. “But I thought in the second half we came out and played more aggressively and at our tempo more.

“The key was sticking with our zone defense and knowing that if we got some rebounds and some loose balls on the floor... if we won that battle then we would start getting good shots,” said Beck.

But game momentum seemed to swing under the boards, with reserve center Shadra Robison clearing the glass for seven boards, leading the Lady Griz to a six-board 39-33 margin. Robison, who had perhaps her best game ever as a Lady Griz, anchored Montana’s zone in the key at both ends, and scored seven points on the night.

“I wanted to step up and get my chance,” said Robison. “I’m making the most of the time that I have left, and... I’m having a blast,” she added.

Frosh guards Kenzie De Boer and Alyssa Smith, and redshirt frosh Alexandra Hurley again contributed quality minutes off the bench, combining for 10 rebounds  and solid defensive play.

But it was the play of Montana’s experienced leaders Ena and Beck that spelled the difference. Ena had a sub-par rebounding night, but was constantly hounded by double-team pressure... still scoring 17 on 5-of-9 shots and 7-for-7 from the free throw line.

Beck, who was shadowed by Huntington all game, shot 6-of-11 from the field, grabbed six rebounds, dished three assists, notched three steals and had three blocked shots, while turning the ball over only three times.

Montana is in the thick of a three-team battle at the top of the Big Sky. Northern Arizona slipped to 3-5 and sixth place in conference play.

Montana now hits the road for a two day swing to last place Weber State and fifth place Idaho State.

Northern Arizona will host the Northern Colorado Bears next week.

Ena's 21 leads Lady Griz past Northern Colorado, 65-54

Throughout most of Montana’s 65-54 win over Northern Colorado Friday, the Bears couldn’t stop Montana’s Sarah Ena.

But when they did, they usually fouled the dominant Montana power forward, who shot 11 free throws and sank seven.

Ena muscled the Bears for 21 points on 7-for-9 shooting on solid post-up moves, or from offensive rebounds, to lead the Lady Griz on a second half surge past the Bears Friday.

The win bumped Montana to 5-2 and into a second-place tie with Portland State in Big Sky Conference action.

Montana Lady Griz coach Robin Selvig expressed satisfaction at the steady, game-by-game maturation of his young team.

“Everybody kind of chipped-in a little bit,” said Selvig. “That’s kind of what this team is doing.”

Selvig credited Ena as the anchor for his team, particularly during the second half of play.

PHOTOS: Montana junior forward Sarah Ena (bove) posts up for two of her game-high 21 points against Northern Colorado forward Lauren Oosdyke in first half action. Montana freshman guard Kenzie De Boer, who scored 11 points, drives for two in second half action.

The Bears – behind 13 points from guard Courtney Stoermer and 10 from forward Lara Merritt – battled the Lady Griz on seemingly even terms through a first half that ended with a slim 31-30 Montana lead.

But the fouls were building up with every NCU attempt to stop Montana’s dominant inside game. The fouls eventually took a toll. The Lady Griz shot 32 free throws and made 20, with 5-of-6 coming from freshman guard Kenzie De Boer, whose quick drives to the bucket resulted in three buckets in addition to her five free throws.

Junior center Jessa Loman Linford added 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting to bolster Montana’s dominant inside game. Montana’s presence in the paint wore the Bears down and after four minutes had elapsed in the second half, the Lady Griz had expanded that slim single-digit lead to six. Though it was still early, the outcome seemed already academic.

For the next four minutes Ena took control, scoring five points and grabbing three rebounds in a stretch where the Lady Griz bumped  their lead to 51-40, with just over nine minutes remaining.

Selvig then pulled Ena for a breather. With Ena on the bench, Montana went on a nine-point tear, led by five points from Loman Linford and a bucket apiece from De Boer and freshman wing Alyssa Smith for a 59-40 margin. The Lady Griz coasted from there, even though the Bears would get within nine late in the game.

Ena said Montana’s second-half play spelled the difference.

“Everyone made plays down the stretch,” said Ena. “It was a physical game, and it was a really good win for us because they’re a good program.”

It was the second-straight 21-point performance for Ena. She credited her emergence to the steadily developing team chemistry.

PHOTOS: Montana center Shadra Robison posts up for two of her four points against the Bears. Reserve forward Alexandria Hurley puts up a shot in heavy traffic. Montana center Jessa Loman Linford, who scored 10 points, grabs a rebound in second half action.

“I think at the beginning of the year it was a big adjustment, learning to play with the new group that we have, and trying to feel comfortable with my role,” said Ena.

“It’s been helpful lately that we’ve been developing more chemistry and feel more comfortable... it’s been a blessing that things have been fitting together,” said Ena.

Senior guard Lauren Beck scored seven points on an uncharteristic 3-for-10 shooting night. Reserve post Shadra Robison had a solid game, scoring five points in 18 minutes of play. Senior point guard Shaunte Nance-Johnson aggravated a bruised knee and only played 11 minutes. Freshman Smith scored four points and grabbed four rebounds for the Lady Griz, who battled the Bears to a 38-38 stalemate on the boards.

With the loss, the Bears slipped to 2-5. Montana hosts Northern Arizona (3-4) Saturday, while the Bears travel to Bozeman for a Saturday clash with the Bobcats, who dropped a Thursday game against NAU.

Lady Griz turn tables on Hornets; pull away for 77-61 win

The Montana Lady Griz were a dramatically different basketball team than they were two weeks ago.

The loss of freshman Katie Baker for the season makes it so. Baker was well on her way toward being the go-to player for the Lady Griz... and certainly had the inside track as freshman of the year, if not more, in the Big Sky.

But Montana's 77-61 win over the Sacramento State Hornets Friday proved many things. Foremost is that Montana still has the players to make a run at the Big Sky regular season title.

But it may take a couple of games, as Friday's starkly contrasting two halves of play demonstrated.

The team is shorter, and not quite as formidable in the key... both on offense and defense. And Montana Coach Robin Selvig is experimenting with numerous lineups to see how things sort out. Selvig looked and sounded like it was the first game of the year as he frantically directed his players toward cohesion in a season that's
nearing the midway point of conference play.

PHOTOS: Sarah Ena (top) has the ball poked away by Hornet defender Emily Christensen during second half play of Montana's 77-61 win Friday. Ena scored 11 points. Jessa Loman Linford (second photo) drives to the bucket for two of her 15 points against the Hornets. Linford drove past defender Erika Edwards on the play. (Third photo) Montana players Stephanie Stender and Lauren Beck fight for possession of the ball in a second half scramble. Beck led the Lady Griz with 19 points while Stender had a sub-par shooting night (1-for-9, and 1-for-5), but grabbed six boards.

Senior guard Lauren Beck and junior forward Sarah Ena must now carry more of the scoring responsibly. They did just that, with Beck scoring 19 and grabbing eight rebounds in her usual quiet fashion, while Ena tossed in 11 points and grabbed seven boards.

But the biggest boost to Montana's offense was provided by three players who will steadily see more minutes as the season progresses. Junior post Jessa Loman Linford, who has moved into a starter's role, played a masterful game Friday, scoring 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting while pulling in seven boards for the Lady Griz.

The other two are -- like Baker -- freshmen. True frosh Kenzie De Boer is still trying to find her shot, but nonetheless scored 12 points, grabbed five rebounds in 19 minutes of play. And redshirt freshman Alexandra Hurley scored 10 points in 12 minutes of play.

The Lady Griz had an off shooting night, shooting an icy 35 percent from the field, 13.5 percent from three point range.

But the team is still working out the kinks with a dramatically re-worked lineup in the paint. After a game or two more of experience, the inside-outside game should get back to the form it was hitting before Baker went down.

In some ways, the Lady Griz may be a bit deeper than anticipated by the end of the season. That's because Selvig may well need to rotate more players into action. But that will just help this team develop as the second half of the season rolls around.

Two weeks ago the relatively young Lady Griz had the look of conference contenders. Friday night they looked like a team trying to find its identity. No matter.

Once the players get more comfortable in their new rotations, this team will return to form. The loss of Baker for the remainder of the season is unfortunate (to her the most, but also to the team). But this team still has the young talent to make a late run for the crown, if not in league play, then most certainly in the tourney.

BOTTOM PHOTOS: Alexander Hurley (#23) scores two of her 10 points in this second-half play. Hurley had her best game of the season so far and is expected to get more minutes through the remainder of the season. (Bottom photo) Freshman Alyssa Smith posts for a shot during second half action. Smith played 13 minutes and scored two points. She was fouled on this play and made one of her two free throws.

Montana shuts-down high-powered Portland State, 90-58

The Montana Grizzlies conducted a clinic in team defense Saturday, holding the Portland State Vikings 21 points below their season average with a convincing 90-58 win in Big Sky Conference action before 3276 fans in Dahlberg Arena.

The victory moves Montana to 3-3 in conference play, while Portland State slipped to 2-2.

The Vikings entered the contest with a 79.1 scoring average, and the league’s best shooting percentage for field goals (.481 ) and three point field goals (.406).

But Montana – the Big Sky’s best defensive team with 59 points per-game allowed - was ready.

The Griz smothered the Vikings with an icy defensive blanket, limiting PSU to a 39.6 field goal percentage. More significantly, the Vikings made only 2-of-15 three point shots (13.3%) as Montana defenders forced the Vikings to the far corners of the court with a doubling, shifting man-on defense.

PHOTOS: Derek Selvig (top) gets a first half tip-in as part of a 10-point Montana run that broke a 16-16 tie resulting in Montana's 28-18 lead midway through the first half. (Bottom) Montana post Brian Qvale scores two of his 19 points against the Vikings. Qvale converted 8-of-9 shots and made 3-of-4 from the free throw line.

Meanwhile, Montana senior point guard Anthony Johnson shredded the Vikings’ defense with darting dribble-enter drives down the lane for 20 points on a hot 6-for-12 shooting night and – when he was fouled by Viks defenders – shot a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line.

When Johnson wasn’t driving & scoring, he and reserve forward Derek Selvig found junior 6’-11” Griz post Brian Qvale open in the key at point-blank range. The muscular Griz post made 8-of-9 field goal attempts and 3-of-4 from the free throw line for 19 points.

But it was Selvig who turned an early 16-16 deadlock into a Montana runaway. The lanky 6'-10" power forward nailed his first of three three-point shots from the tip of the key, fed Qvale for another score, and then capped the rally with a second trey, catapulting the Grizzlies to a 28-18 lead in a short three-minute span midway through the first half.

The Grizzlies steadily extended the lead over the increasingly frustrated Viks, and led 41-28 at halftime.

Despite a couple of brief Vikings’ scoring flurries early in the second half the Grizzlies – under Johnson’s steady hand, controlled the game, steadily expanding the lead to the final 32-point margin.

Senior shooting guard Ryan Staudacher had his second-straight outstanding shooting game, swishing 5-of-7 field goals, 2-for-4 from three-point range. Staudacher also anchored Montana’s switching defense with back-door protection against lobs or screens and pulled down five rebounds on the game.

Staudacher and Montana coach Wayne Tinkle said Montana’s defensive strategy was to prevent the Vikings from shooting beyond the arc.

“They (the Vikings) shot a lot of threes and they’ve got great shooters and we just really focused on taking away the three-point line.

“We did a good job of building help defense and keeping the ball in front of us... something we worked on in practice all week,” said Staudacher.

PHOTOS: Ryan Staudacher (top) scores two of his 15 points in first-half action of Montana's 90-58 win over  Portland State. Mathias Ward (bottom) drives to the bucket for two of his eight points Saturday.

“We just extended our D out a little bit more,” said Tinkle. “ We really guard at the 3-point line and we knew tonight we were going to have to maybe move a step or two out because we knew they were such a prolific three point shooting team.

“Our guys were really on pace,” said Tinkle. “We switched a lot of their on-ball looks, and it kept them from getting some open looks,” said Tinkle.

Tinkle singled-out Qvale, and his dominance of the key as a game-changing force.

“It’s nice to know when he’s anchoring things down in or around the basket,” said Tinkle. “We know that we can throw it to him and he’s going to score at a high clip.

“Teams have got to figure out if they’re going to trap him and then leave a shooter open out on the perimeter... or just go one-on-one and let him score.”

Tinkle alluded to Montana’s depth, particularly on defense. But team depth also paid dividends on offense. Besides Selvig’s 11 points, six rebounds and three assists, frosh reserve post Mathias Ward scored eight points, grabbed four rebounds, and played solid defense in 12 minutes of play.

Montana outrebounded Portland State 33-24, and logged a stellar assist-to-turnover ratio of 17-3, compared to the Vikings 8-10.

Montana now travels to Sacramento for a Jan 20 game against the Hornets, their first of four straight road games. The Vikings return tome for a Thursday clash with league-leading Northern Colorado and a Saturday game against 1-4 Northern Arizona.

Cherry 'picks' Eagles: leads Grizzlies to 79-66 win over Eastern

Montana freshman point guard Will Cherry converted three steals into six points in the first three minutes of second-half, and single-handedly reversed the flow of the game in the Grizzlies’ 79-66 Big Sky Conference win over the Eastern Washington Eagles at Dahlberg Arena Friday.

The win boosts Montana’s record to 2-3 heading into Saturday night’s clash against the Portland State Vikings, who lost to the MSU Bobcats 77-71. The Eagles, who slipped to 1-2, face the Bobcats in Bozeman Saturday.

The Eagles – behind early deadeye shooting of Glen Dean and Jeffrey Forbes – had shot a blistering 55.6% percent from the field in the first half, including 57 percent from three-point range – to take a 41-37 lead into halftime.

A further catalyst of EWU’s run was a monstrous 10-rebound first half margin, keyed by Eagle senior center Brandon Moore, who finished the game with 11.

But Cherry changed the fortunes of both teams in lightning quick fashion.

Eastern quickly built its halftime margin to seven on forward Mark Dunn’s trey mere seconds into the second half. But then Cherry went to work.

The frosh defensive wiz stole the ball from Dean and scored on a layup to draw the Griz within five.

Seconds later, Cherry hit a jumper in the key to pull Montana within three.

PHOTOS: Freshman Will Cherry (top) slices between Eagle defenders Kevin Winford (23) and Jeffrey Forbes (2) and then scores (second) two of his 17 points in Montana's 79-66 win over EWU Friday.

Suddenly, an Eagle lead of seven-points... and the game momentum, was halted.

“He (Cherry) was the difference,” said Montana coach Wayne Tinkle. “We were in la-la land defensively, we didn’t communicate, we had zero intensity... we couldn’t guard the corner in our 2-3 zone...

“I’m telling you, he’s young,” Tinkle added. “But whenever we get after him and challenge him, he responds. And once he did that, I think everybody jumped on his coattails.”

Cherry said he was just doing what his coaches told him to do.

“In the second half, I really just tried to come out and put the pressure on their guards, which they hadn’t seen in the first half,” said Cherry. “That’s what the coaches really want me to do... pick up full court and just really pressure the guards.”

Montana’s defense, taking direct inspiration from Cherry, applied the clamps to the Eagle’s dribble-screen & roll offense at the high post. And when Eagle ball-handlers managed to penetrate the key, Montana center Brian Qvale was there. Qvale notched a Montana record six blocked shots, including a steal that led directly to another bucket by Cherry.

The teams battled on even terms over the next four minutes, with EWU clinging to a narrow lead, until another Cherry steal and bucket at the 13:18 mark gave Montana its first lead since early in the first half at 51-49.

Montana’s sudden defensive intensity gradually wore the Eagles down. Eastern’s second-half shooting percentage plummeted to 36 percent over the second frame.

PHOTOS: Montana senior guard Anthony Johnson (above) scores two of his game-high 25 points against Eagle defenders Glen Dean (#1) and Brandon Moore. Montana forward Jack McGillis drives to the bucket past Eagle defender Mark Dunn. McGillis scored six points in Montana's win.

The results were recorded at the other end of the floor... and on the scoreboard.

Montana’s revived defense – which notched 13 steals, led by Cherry’s seven – rattled the Eagles, who committed nine additional turnovers (22 for the game).

The logjam broke with five minutes remaining. Montana extended its lead quickly to six... this time on a steal by Johnson, who drove the lane, but saw Griz shooting guard Ryan Staudacher in the left corner for his first trey. On the next possession, Qvale stole a pass intended for Moore and passed it to wing Raason Young on the break. Young found Staudacher open in the same spot: good again. Griz up 70-61. Game over.

“We finally got a couple in transition,” said Staudacher. “Will and Anthony both did a great job of looking up the floor.

“You know,” Staudacher added, “If they want to face-guard me in the corner and give these guys lanes to drive to the basket, so be it. But I finally got open on a great screen by Qvale, and I got a chance to knock them down.”

Johnson was the main benefactor of Cherry’s inspired play, however.

The senior responded with his best game in perhaps a month, scoring 25 points on his patented combo of slashing drives and alternating pull-up jumpers. And when Eastern defenders tightened up on Johnson, he dished to the wings, where Staudacher’s 3-of-4 treys netted 11 points, while junior win Raason Young added six.

“That’s the Stauds I like, right there,” said Johnson. “When he’s knocking down shots, I don’t think there’s anybody who can do it better than him,

“We know we’re a better team when we’re attacking,” Johnson added. “I mean, it plays to everybody’s strength. Leave the attacking up to me and Will, and leave the three-point shooting to our shooters.”

Cherry finished with 17 points on 7-for-13 shooting, while forward Jack McGillis netted six and pulled down four rebounds.

Qvale – who scored only four points on the game – made up for it with his towering defense, which included two steals.

Eastern was led by Dean’s 15 points. Forbes added 12, while Dunn and Moore scored eight.

The Eagles finished with an 11-rebound margin (36-25), but the board battle was even in the second frame.

Montana turned the ball over only seven times.

Montana shot a lukewarm 18-of-26 free throws, but upped its shooting percentage to 49.1 – which included 7-of-15 from long range –  by game’s end.

Baker's double-double paces Montana's 63-55 win over Idaho State

In a Big Sky Conference women’s basketball game that sported all the attributes of a back-alley brawl, Montana freshman Katie Baker stepped to the fore in her second straight game, scoring 23 points and hauling down 17 rebounds to lead the Montana Lady Griz over the pugnacious Idaho State Bengals 63-55 before 2661 fans in Dahlberg Arena Monday.

Of perhaps even more importance was the timing of Baker’s most inspired stretch of play, a brief 60-second, five-point flurry that broke open a game that had seemed endlessly deadlocked by furious defensive attacks from both teams.

It all started when Lady Griz off-guard Stephanie Stender’s baseline three-pointer from Sarah Ena’s assist erased Montana’s final deficit of the game for a 43-41 lead with 5:49 remaining.

Over the next minute of play, Baker grabbed three rebounds and scored two buckets -- one on an offensive board and put-back -- and then made one of two free throws, catapulting the Lady Griz to a 48-41 lead with 5:06 left to play.

The mini-rally was capped by senior guard Lauren Beck, whose trey gave Montana a 51-41 lead at the 4:08 mark.

The deadlock of the tense game was broken and the Lady Griz were able to keep the scrambling Bengal defenders at bay over the next four-plus minutes of play.

With the win, Montana moves to 2-0, tied for first in Big Sky play, while the Bengals drop to 1-1 after earning a road split with an overtime win at Montana State Saturday.

Idaho State coach Seton Sobolewski described Montana’s Baker-led stretch succinctly.

“I thought Katie Baker did a nice job. She got an offensive rebound, she got a put-back, and then she had a low-post move that put them up four,” said Sobolewski.

“I think in close games one or two possessions can make a big difference... and in a close game a four-point lead down the stretch is a big difference.”

“And that made a big difference because we didn’t respond,” said Sobolewski.

Baker’s two-game stretch of play has netted her 47 points and 25 rebounds, and coincides nicely with the beginning of conference play. Her 17 rebounds is three short of the Montana record of 20, set by Lady Griz great Greta Koss.

“I want to be more aggressive on the boards,” said Baker. “Coach Selvig has been really pounding to get the boards. And my brother has always been telling me to get the boards... it’s like, ‘Block out, or get out.’” said Baker with a laugh.

That aggressiveness created more opportunities to score, said Baker.

“I saw my opportunity and went in and I think I missed one, but got the rebound and kept going back up. You know, it’s just opportunity. If I get the ball and have an opportunity to score, I’m going to try and do that.”

PHOTOS: Lady Griz freshman post Katie Baker battles for position against two Bengals defenders. Baker scored 23 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead Montana. Lady Griz point guard Shaunte Nance-Johnson (second photo) is defended on a fast break by ISU's Oana Iacovita (21) and Chelsea Pickering. Reserve forward Jessa Loman Linford (third photo) looks for an outlet pass after grabbing a rebound in first-half play. Baker (bottom), scores two of her game high points against Bengal defender Iacovita.

Montana coach Robin Selvig credited Baker’s work ethic and mental confidence for her steady progress.

“She’s starting to get a better feel for when she has a shot. She always plays hard,” said Selvig. “She has a great mental attitude in terms of she thinks she’s a player... she’s coachable... and I can rant and rave at her and it doesn’t seem to bother her,” Selvig Added.

Until the Montana rally, the two teams had battled on even terms for nearly 35 minutes of play. Montana grabbed two early first-half, six-point leads.

But the Bengals -- behind the steady point-guard play of Andrea Videbeck -- always battled back, and took their first lead of the game with one second remaining in the half when guard Devin Diehl made two of three free throws for a 27-26 ISU lead.

The Bengals maintained a slim margin through the early minutes of the second half, a rugged stretch where each team’s defensive intensity literally overpowered any offense either team could muster.

The defensive slug-fest was revealed statistically. Montana made only 20-of-58 field goals (34.5%), while the Bengals shot a slightly icier 20-of-59 (33.9%). The Lady Griz committed 16 turnovers, which were nullified by ISU’s 14. The major difference came at the free throw line where Montana made 17-for-21, seven more points than ISU’s 10-for-14 mark at the stripe.

Chalk it all up to defense, said Sobolewski.

“It was a defensive battle and, you know, sometimes as a spectator it’s not the funnest game to watch. We don’t do exactly what Robin does with his team. But we try to emulate being of the toughness, at least,” said Sobolewski.

Which meant the stage was set for any breakthrough, no matter how minor.

Baker’s play on the boards spelled the difference. The Lady Griz finished with a solid 46-38 margin on the boards, and 16 of those rebounds came at the offensive end of the floor.

For the second straight night, Montana got balanced scoring. Senior guard Beck scored 16 and junior guard Stender scored 12, six of them coming from two three-point buckets at critical points of the game.

“Seph’s playing good,” said Selvig. “And in the last two games in particular she’s hit some real big shots for us.”

ISU’s Diehl led the Bengals with 11 poins, while forward Oana Iacovita scored 10 and Videbeck had nine. Shooting guard Chelsea Pickering made only 3-of-13 shots, one-of-8 from three point range.

Montana now hits the road for games against Eastern Washington and conference pre-season pick Portland State.

The Bengals return home for games against Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado.

Lady Griz shake the jitters, rebound to beat Weber State 73-67

It took nearly 19 minutes, but the Montana Lady Griz eventually overcame a severe case of first-half jitters – and an assortment of Weber State zone trap pressure looks –  to post a Big Sky Conference-opening 73-67 win before 3051 fans at Dahlberg Arena Saturday.

The win moves Montana to 1-0 while WSU dropped to 0-2 in league action. Monday Montana will host the Idaho State Bengals, overtime winners over MSU on Saturday.

Montana trailed the Wildcats by as many as 11 points midway throughout the first half, but got key buckets from senior forward Lauren Beck and junior guard Stephanie Stender in the final minute to narrow the halftime deficit to five, at 36-31.

Then – despite stumbling out of the gates with three straight turnovers against the Cats’ pressure – Monana outscored WSU 11-3 in the first two minutes of the second half, quickly commandeered a 41-39 lead, and then gradually extended the margin to nine with a classic Lady Griz inside-outside offensive game before securing with win at the free throw line during the final minutes of play.

The Lady Griz got balanced scoring from four starters, but freshman post Katie Baker and junior guard Stephanie Stender sparked Montana during critical second-half stretches.

Baker displaying remarkable poise for a true frosh, provided muscle and the offense in the paint during Montana’s crucial second-half run. The young post led all players with 24 points on 9-of-13 scoring, pulled down eight rebounds and had two steals.

Stender, showing more confidence with each game played, nailed three important treys – one during Montana’s late first-half run, and two others at important junctures late in the game. She finished with 15 points and pulled down six rebounds, one that she converted into to a put-back bucket in the game’s final minutes.

Senior guard Lauren Beck had a sub-par shooting night, but still scored 16 points, while junior forward Sarah Ena made 8-of-9 freethrows, – several during the game’s final minutes – and scored 14 total.

Montana committed numerous turnovers in several frantic minutes of the first half, and finished with 16. But both Montana coach Robin Selvig and Baker said the turnovers seemed to be self-forced rather than the result of actual Wildcat pressure.

“We know what we’re supposed to do,” said Baker. “The crowd was like ‘Go, go go,’ but you don’t necessarily have to race through a press-break, you know. We have to pass it back and forth like we did...

“We just finally figured it out, we got our rhythm back, that was all,” said Baker.

 “It wasn’t really what we were doing... where we were,” said Selvig. “The girls were just throwing it away, traveling... being scared to have the ball.”

“We didn’t pull out any miracle, ‘Let’s run this,’” added Selvig. “The crowd’s always wanting you to ‘Go, go, go.’"

"Well, you can’t just go, go, go. But I thought we were just more confident with it and took care of the ball better,” said Selvig.

PHOTOS: Freshman post Katie Baker (top) scores two of her game-high 24 points with this second-half drive. Senior guard Lauren Beck (middle) converts two of her 16 points against the Wildcats. Junior Guard Stephanie Stender grabs an offensive rebound against WSU. Stender scored on the putback for two of her 15 points.

The Wildcats, with five returning starters, were led by forward Caitlin Anderson’s 7-for-11 shooting  for 16 points down low and guards Tonya Scnnibbe (16) and Sarah Conner

(11)  who efficiently mixed dribble-ener drives with pull-up jumpers.
But as the Lady Griz eventually solved the Cats’ trapping pressure, a better effort on defense followed suit. Lady Griz defenders nabbed several second-half steals, which in turn sparked their offensive play. That’s when Baker took over down low. Several of her buckets came on assists from point guard Shaunte Nance-Johnson (5 assists) and Beck (3). And forward Ena, who dished three.

With the turnaround Montana’s play became more confident, and – despite a late run by the Wildcats – the Lady Griz never seemed in danger, nailing 15-of-19 second half free throws, several during the final two minutes of play.

“This is a huge win, starting conference,” said Baker. “We really needed to get early momentum. We just made a statement, down by five at half and coming back hard in the second half and able to come back. We didn’t just give up.”

Stender agreed. “This will definitely give us a confidence boost... not like we were low on confidence to begin with... But it’s important, especially going into conference. And it should be a booster going against Idaho Sate,” said Stender.

Montana continued its steady offensive improvement, converting 23-of-50 shots for 46 percent, while outrebounding the Cats 33-30. WSU ended with a solid 46.7% field goal mark, but made only 5-of-8 free throws on the game.