(Editor's note: Rocky Mountain College news release)
Rocky 81, Montana Western 68 (Women)
BILLINGS — In a game that featured 19 lead changes and 13 ties, the Rocky women closed the final five minutes strong to grab a double-digit win at home over Montana Western.
Five players scored in double figures for the Battlin' Bears, led by Sydney Dethman's game-high 21 points. A season-low six turnovers and 12 offensive rebounds helped the Rocky women control possession and get back into the win column on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams took a little while to settle in offensively, with the first points coming from Dethman at the 7:30 mark of the first quarter. From then on, however, both teams found their rhythms in different styles, as Montana Western was getting it done from the mid-range and 3-point line, including a 4-of-4 start from Maddie Moy. The Battlin' Bears were earning their way to the free throw line, as they combined to shoot 8-of-8 from the charity stripe, ultimately leading to a 16-15 Bulldog advantage after the first quarter.
Three-point shooting was a crucial key for both programs in the second quarter, as both teams hit 4 of 6 3-point attempts in the quarter to match each other's output. Rocky extended its largest lead of the game at six with a 7-0 run late in the quarter, but Moy sank a 3-pointer on the second-to-last offensive possession for the Bulldogs to cut their halftime deficit to three.
The third quarter continued as a true back-and-forth contest, with neither team gaining much of an edge. A pair of 3-pointers from Paige Wasson led the Battlin' Bears to an 8-0 run with three minutes to go in the quarter to extend a lead out to seven, but a short run from the Bulldogs to close the quarter cut the deficit to four.
The Battlin' Bears finally made their move in crunch time. Wasson would grab a defensive rebound and take the ball down the floor before finding her way under the basket for a layup, giving the Battlin' Bears a one-point lead. This layup would spark a 19-5 finish to the game for the Rocky women, as they hit six of their final seven shots, including 10 points in that stretch from Iliana Moran. Coupled with their offensive explosion, the defense forced three turnovers and held the Bulldogs to 1 of 6 from the field in the final five minutes to break away for a double-digit victory at home.
Dethman finished with a game-high 21 points on the afternoon, dishing out three assists as well. Wasson tallied her third career double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Moran added 16 points, six assists and three steals.
Gracee Lekvold and Brenna Linse each added 10 points on the afternoon. The Battlin' Bears made good of their trips to the free throw line, finishing the afternoon 18 of 22. Rocky made nine 3-pointers on the afternoon and shot 41.5% from the field. The rebounding margin also favored the Battlin' Bears, 38-29.
Payton Hagy led the Bulldogs with 20 points on six made 3s, while Moy tallied a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Rocky 79, Montana Western 68 (Men)
All five starters tallied double figures as the No. 19 Rocky men secured another home victory to round out the first conference rotation.
After totaling 21 turnovers in their loss on Thursday, the Battlin' Bears limited their mistakes in Saturday's win to hold a big second-half lead. Rocky was efficient from inside, shooting 54.8% from the field, its third-best mark of the season.
While the 3-point shot wasn't falling at a high rate for the Rocky men in the first half, they controlled the paint on both ends and shot 53.3% from the field through the first 20 minutes of play. A 10-2 run midway through the half built a lead as large as 11 for the Battlin' Bears, but Jalyn Stepney would score the final four points of the half for either team as Montana Western cut the deficit to just six.
The Rocky men came out of the gates firing in the second half, beginning the first six minutes on a 19-5 run featuring baskets on nine of their first 13 shots. Defensively, they were just as impressive, forcing five Bulldog turnovers in that stretch to build a 20-point lead with 14 minutes to play.
Montana Western had no quit, stringing together a run to cut their deficit to 12 and force a Battlin' Bear timeout with eight minutes to play. While the Rocky men were able to temper the Bulldog run temporarily with a pair of Omari Nesbit jumpers, Kyle Gruhler and Jacksen Burkley hit back-to-back 3-pointers to again slice their deficit to 10 points with five minutes remaining.
From then on, however, the Rocky men slowed the game down and remained efficient from the floor and the free throw line, as they made four of their final five shots from the field and made six of eight free throws to hold off the Montana Western momentum and snag their 15th win of the season.
Royce Robinson led all five starters in double figures, finishing with a career-high 19 points, two blocks and two steals. Jaylon Lee tallied his 12th double-double of the year in an overall dominant night, tallying 17 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
Also in double figures were Nesbit (14 points), Carter McCoy (12) and Jesse Owens (12). Nesbit and McCoy each added three steals a piece, while Owens added four assists and hit three 3-pointers. The Rocky men shot 54.8% from the field overall despite shooting 27.8% from 3.
Jalyn Stepney and Alan Kane each tallied 16 points for the Bulldogs.
