BOZEMAN — It didn’t take long to realize Saturday was going to be a fun one for the Montana State women’s basketball team against rival Montana.
But if there was any doubt, Katelynn Martin put an end to it in the first half.
PHOTOS: BOBCATS, LADY GRIZ CLASH IN BRAWL OF THE WILD IN BOZEMAN
Martin’s banked-in, running 3-pointer at the buzzer before halftime gave the Bobcats a 27-point lead, and MSU rode Esmeralda Morales’ standout effort to a 98-66 victory over the Lady Griz at Worthington Arena in the second of two Brawl of the Wild matchups this season.
Martin's buzzer-beater came off a turnover just seconds after Morales had hit a 3-pointer of her own, and capped a dominant opening 20 minutes.
"It feels great. It's always great to beat Missoula," said Morales, a transfer from Portland State who finished with 28 points. "It's my first year (at MSU), but it's different. You can tell. The energy, you can sense it.
"It's great to win. By that much, too? It's even better."
The win was significant for MSU in that it improved its record to 25-2 overall and 15-0 in the Big Sky Conference, and it also served as the Bobcats’ 18th in a row to set the program single-season record for consecutive wins.
The 25 wins also matches a season-high in the tenure of 20-year coach Tricia Binford; MSU also won 25 in the 2016-17 and 2019-20 seasons (the latter was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
The Cats, who squeaked out a 67-66 victory in Missoula on Jan. 25, have now won nine of the past 11 against Montana and 11 straight against the Lady Griz on their home court.
With the final seconds winding down, Montana State had the ball with a chance to hit triple digits. The fans were urging their team to go for it. Binford seemed less enthusiastic. A Natalie Picton 3-point attempt fell short.
"I was trying to wave Natalie off, and obviously she's got the crowd on her," Binford said, noting her relationshp with Lady Griz interim head coach Nate Harris, formerly an assisistant at MSU. "I would have loved to have dribbled it out. I have tremendous respect for Nate.
"It's just not who we are, but at the same time I understand our crowd was really excited and wanted the 100 points. I'm also really, really grateful for this tremendous crowd today."
Sporting yellow uniforms in a basketball-style Gold Rush atmosphere in front of 4,120 fans, Montana State broke out to a 17-7 first-quarter lead when Marah Dykstra scored off a Taylee Chirrick steal.
That lead turned into 20 points at 34-14 on a pull-up 3 from Morales early in the second, and subsequent triples by Morales, Chirrick and Taylor Janssen built an advantage that was punctuated by Martin’s running 3 as the horn sounded to end the first half.
By then it was academic as the Bobcats’ advantage grew to as much as 40 points after the break. MSU, again fueled by its defensive pressure, forced 28 turnovers and scored 38 points off of those.
Morales had 15 of her 28 points in the first half. She hit 4 of 9 3-pointers and all eight of her free throw attempts. She also had five assists and five rebounds.
But 12 Bobcats reached the scoring column — Chirrick had 13, Janssen added 11 and Lexi Deden chipped in 10.
The Lady Griz (10-16, 6-9 Big Sky) didn’t have a lot to cheer about Saturday. They were led by Avery Waddington’s 20 points. Tyler McCliment-Call had 17 and Aby Shubert added 11. The Lady Griz made 12 of 32 3-point tries, but only made 8 of 11 from the foul line compared to MSU's 22-for-26 showing.
Montana hasn’t beaten the Bobcats in Bozeman since March 3, 2014.
"I have done a poor job of helping our team understand how to guard their way through rough shooting stretches," said Harris, UM's interim head coach since Brian Holsinger's resignation on Feb. 10. "We're too dependent on making shots to determine how we feel, and that comes back to me and my job, helping them understand that winning games takes a takes a well rounded effort."
"Anytime you hesitate against a team that's that aggressive, it comes back to haunt you. And that's some of that toughness and resolve to keep just doing the right thing even when you're not seeing the results."
Montana State did lose guard Dylan Philip to an apparent right leg injury in the second quarter. Philip was helped off the floor and did not return to the game. Forward Marah Dykstra was also slowed by injury and played only 5:37.
The Lady Griz host Sacramento State on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Dahlberg Arena looking to snap a four-game losing streak. The Bobcats host Portland State on Thursday at 7, looking to keep their record winning streak intact.
"I think the coaches have really done a good job of prepping us for every single game, and I think the girls have bought into executing every single possession, because we know that games can come down to possessions," MSU's Martin said. "And so I think we're just well-oiled and bought into the process of what success looks like. And I think that's what we executed today."
