Senior forward Jordan Hasquet scored 22 points and junior guard Ryan Staudacher chipped in 20 as The University of Montana Grizzlies defeated the visiting University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux 83-63 Tuesday evening in front of 3,036 fans in UM’s Dahlberg Arena.
The game was close for the 10 minutes or so of the first half, as there were four ties and North Dakota took an early 5-2 lead in the opening minute. But, with the game tied 11-11 Montana scored nine unanswered points, and took a 20-11 lead with 9:30 to go until halftime on a jump shot by Griz junior guard Anthony Johnson and never relinquished the lead.
On its next possession, North Dakota (4-2) cut the Montana margin to six points (20-14) on a three-pointer by freshman guard Pat Mitchell, but that was the closest the Fighting Sioux got for the remainder of the contest. The Grizzlies led 45-31 at halftime.
The Grizzlies kept their double-digit lead the entire second half, and their biggest advantage was 23 points with 9:26 to go when Staudacher drilled one of his many treys, giving UM a 67-44 bulge.
Hasquet made 8-of-12 shots, while Staudacher was 7-of-8 from the field and nailed 6-of-7 three-pointers. Also in double figure for Montana was Johnson with 14 points. UM sophomore center Brian Qvale, from Williston, N.D., had 8 rebounds, while senior forward Kyle Sharp also hauled down 8 boards.
UND was led by senior guard Daniel Harkins with 16 points, while junior guard Travis Bledsoe added 11 points, and sophomore center Derek Benter grabbed a team-best 8 rebounds.
The Griz host Denver in the first night of the Karl Tyler Chevrolet Grizzly Basketball Classic Thursday at 7:00 p.m. The other team in the three-team, round-robin tourney is the University of Texas-Arlington.
North Dakota is at Northern Iowa on Saturday.