MONMOUTH, Ore. — The Montana State Billings men's basketball team continued its winning streak in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference after a triple-overtime thriller on the road Thursday night.
Bilal Shabazz had a career-high 31 points and also grabbed 10 rebounds as MSUB edged Western Oregon 91-88 in the league's first triple OT contest since 2019. Carrington Wiggins added 20 points, four rebounds and four steals for the Jackets, who improved to 19-5 overall and to 13-1 in the GNAC.
Jalen Tot scored 13 points, all in the second half and OT, and had three assists. Abdul Bah also had 13 with four rebounds and four assists. Steven Richardson scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds.
Trailing 88-87, Bah made a jumper to give the Jackets an 89-88 lead with 41 seconds remaining in the third OT. Free throws by Shabazz and Wiggins in the final seconds iced it.
The game featured 28 lead changes and 18 ties. With the win, MSUB maintained the first-place lead in the GNAC standings over second-place Saint Martin's (19-4, 11-2), which sets up a huge game between the Yellowjackets and Saints on Saturday in Lacey, Wash. MSUB has won five in a row while Saint Martin's is on a six-game winning streak.
