MOSCOW, Idaho — A sluggish first half put the Montana State men's basketball team behind the sticks in their Big Sky Conference opener, leading to a 69-64 defeat at Idaho on Thursday night at ICCU Arena in Moscow.
Despite putting up just 25 points in the first 20 minutes, the Bobcats (5-9, 0-1) willed themselves back into the game and took a 61-60 lead over the Vandals (6-8, 1-0) on a Brian Goracke 3-pointer with 3:36 to play, but couldn't muster enough stops to pull it out on the road.
"We scored 40 points in the second half and had it clicking then, but the first half was a different story," head coach Matt Logie said. "We let the ball stick a little bit too much, we missed layups, we missed free throws. We're down five at halftime and had 25 points.
"At the end of the day, we didn't make enough plays. We battled back and got the lead and weren't able to capitalize on the opportunity for a variety of reasons. At the end of the day, if you make free throws, take care of the ball in timely situations — sometimes you have to win by eight on the road to win by two, and we didn't get it done."
Patrick McMahon tied his career-high with 15 points, scoring 12 in the second half alone on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor.
The redshirt junior from Palmer, Alaska, backed down defenders in the paint and attacked the rim on possession after possession, throwing down a pair of emphatic dunks as Montana State tried to chip away at Idaho's working margin.
"Pat was good in attacking the basket, playing off two feet and being fundamental around the rim," Logie said.
McMahon's 15 points match his previous high of 15 against Seattle U on Nov. 11, 2023.
Goracke added 14 points off the bench, also scoring 12 in the second half alone including a burst in the final few minutes to push the Bobcats in front ahead of the final possessions.
After his 3-pointer gave Montana State the 61-60 lead with 3:36 to play, the Vandals called timeout and then connected on a 3-point answer at the other end before adding a layup. With a minute to play, Idaho had the ball and a 65-61 lead before Goracke stole the inbounds pass and laid it in through contact on the other end.
The senior converted on the free throw, making it a slim 65-64 Idaho lead with 50 seconds left.
However, the Vandals got a dunk on the ensuing possession, then rebounded a Bobcat miss in the paint before making a pair of free throws to seal the game.
"I think the second half gave us plenty to build off of," Logie said. "We didn't have everybody play their best today, and obviously it's a quick turnaround with Eastern Washington on Saturday. We're disappointed. We were hoping to get a road sweep, but over the course of the conference season, if you can bounce back and win your second game after a tough loss, that says a lot about your team. That's the goal now."
Montana State shot 22 of 57 from the floor (38.6%) including 6 of 27 from beyond the arc (22.2%). The Cats created several good looks after halftime, but shot just 2 of 14 from deep as they battled their way back in the second frame.
Tyler Patterson scored all 10 of his points in the first half.
Jabe Mullins contributed nine points and three assists, while Max Agbonkpolo scored eight points and pulled down nine rebounds.
Montana State has a quick turnaround, traveling to Cheney, Washington, to face off with Eastern Washington on Saturday afternoon.
Tip between the two-time defending Big Sky regular-season champions and the three-time defending Big Sky tournament champions is set for 2 p.m. PT/3 p.m. MT.
