GRAND FORKS, N.D. — Montana raced out to an 18-point halftime lead over North Dakota on Thursday night at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center and held that lead to the finish, opening its two-game road trip with a 71-59 victory.
The Lady Griz (3-2), who picked up their first road win of the season and their sixth straight over the Fighting Hawks (2-2), went 8 for 16 from the 3-point line in the first half and shot 48.6% overall through the first 20 minutes.
A team that entered the game averaging 17 turnovers had only one in the first quarter, five in the first half as Montana picked apart North Dakota’s defense. Eight Lady Griz scored in the first half.
“Obviously we played really well in the first half, hitting shots and making their big kids guard,” said coach Brian Holsinger. “We’re learning how to take care of the ball a little bit better and just getting better overall.”
North Dakota, which scored the first seven points of the third quarter, outscored Montana for the second half but could get no closer than nine over the final 20 minutes. The Lady Griz led by at least a dozen throughout the fourth quarter.
“The second half we didn’t play that well offensively, but we found ways to make it hard for them to score,” said Holsinger.
After North Dakota scored the game’s opening five points, Montana answered in a hurry, with back-to-back 3-pointers by Avery Waddington and MJ Bruno giving the Lady Griz a lead they would hold the final 37 minutes of the game.
Waddington checked into the game less than two minutes in after Alex Pirog picked up two quick fouls.
It was Montana’s bench to the rescue all night long, the team’s reserves pouring in 35 crucial points on 14-of-24 shooting.
Tyler McCliment-Call had her best offensive showing of the season, scoring 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Macy Donarski had five points, three assists and three steals in 15 minutes, Waddington hit a pair of 3-pointers and Izabella Zingaro added eight points on 4-of-5 shooting.
Dani Bartsch went 5 for 9 from the 3-point line and scored 15 points in the first half, and Mack Konig had eight points and four assists at the break.
With Montana up 18 at the half, the Lady Griz had enough cushion to overcome 7-of-24 (.292) shooting in the second half.
Bartsch would finish with 15 points and eight rebounds, Konig with 12 points and five assists, with McCliment-Call making it three in double figures.
Montana matched North Dakota at the free line, each team making 13. The Fighting Hawks had outscored their first three opponents 59-27 at the line. The Lady Griz also outrebounded their second consecutive opponent.
Fatima Ibrahim led North Dakota with 17 points off the bench.
Last Sunday, Montana faced an unbeaten team from the Big Ten, handing Washington its first loss of the season, 82-68 in Missoula.
It will be another unbeaten opponent from the Big Ten on Sunday as Montana wraps up its road trip with a game at Minnesota (6-0) at 1 p.m. (MT) in Minneapolis.
The Gophers have won their first six games by an average of more than 30 points, with a 73-38 victory over Oregon State and an 81-52 home win over Eastern Illinois on Wednesday night.
