HOUSTON — It was a duel between Montana Tech and the school's most accomplished former coach, Kelvin Sampson, as the NCAA's No. 15 Houston Cougars played host to the NAIA Orediggers in a Saturday exhibition at the Fertitta Center.
The No. 15 Cougars took the matchup 78-51.
Montana Tech hung close to the Cougars throughout the contest with Houston taking a 45-30 lead into the half.
The Orediggers finished the game shooting 31.6 percent from the floor and knocked down eight threes in the loss while the Cougars shot 49.2 percent.
The Diggers were led by Sindou Diallo who registered 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting. Caleb Bellach scored 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the floor and a 3-for-6 effort from three. Keeley Bake added 10 points while Derrius Collins chipped in six and Bridger Larson and Drew Huse each scored two.
Marcus Sasser led all scorers with 21 points with five made threes. Fabian White Jr. and Josh Carlton scored 17 points and 16 points respectively.
The Orediggers get back to business when they host the College of Idaho on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Montana Tech Fall Classic.
