Bulldog Men’s Basketball Overpowers Warner Pacific 90-66 in 2025-26 Home Opener

DILLON, Mont. – The UMW men's basketball program (2-0) toppled Warner Pacific (0-1) 90-66 Thursday evening in Straugh Gymnasium. The win marks the 10th straight year that the Bulldogs have won their home opener, dating back to the 2016-17 season.

"Really happy with our defensive effort tonight and how well we shared the ball on the offensive end," head coach Patrick Jensen said. "We have a really deep team with a lot of depth and that showed tonight with four guys in double figures and nobody over 23 minutes played."

STAT BREAKDOWN

Montana Western shot 50.0 percent (30-60) from the field, 33.3 percent (9-27) from beyond the arc, and 61.9 percent (21-34) from the charity stripe.

The Bulldogs held the statistical advantage across the board, leading in rebounds (43-40), assists (16-7), steals (5-3), and blocks (5-2).

UMW also outearned the Knights in points in the paint (32-22), points off turnovers (17-8), second-chance points (6-3), and bench points (46-20).

NOTABLES

Four Bulldogs reached double figures in scoring

11 players scored in the contest and every player that saw the court registered at least one rebound for Western.

The team committed just seven turnovers.

LEADERBOARD

Kyle Gruhler paced the team with 21 points while Emanuel Steward (16), Quincy Taylor (11), and Joshua Whiteside (11) were also in double figures.

David Young pulled down a team-best six rebounds, followed by Billy Carlson with five.

Steward and Taylor dished out a game-high tying three assists apiece.

Carlson, Gruhler, Whiteside, Jacksen Burckley, and Kolter Merritt each snagged a steal, and Jacob Ankeny swatted a game-best two blocks.

GAME SUMMARY

Gruhler got things going with five quick points for Western, but it was a back-and-forth affair for much of the opening 10 minutes. The Red and Black pulled ahead 14-13 with 13 minutes remaining in the half and slowly increased the gap to as many as 15 before taking the 42-30 lead into the locker room.

Gruhler led the team with 14 points while Carlson paced the team in rebounds (five). Young and Stewart had two assists apiece.

At the break, the Bulldogs were shooting 53.6 percent (15-28) from the floor, 36.4 percent (4-11) from deep, and 61.5 percent (8-13) from the line. They tallied 20 rebounds, eight assists, four blocks, and three steals in the period.

UMW didn't let up in the second half, stretching its lead to as many as 28 midway through the period. After that point, the Knights never got closer than 21 and Western cruised to the 90-66 victory.

THE OTHER GUYS

Warner Pacific shot 32.3 percent (20-62) from the field, 27.3 percent (6-22) from three, and 76.9 percent (20-26) from the foul line in the contest. Jurrien Sparks posted a game-best 26 points while Terrin Dickey led all players in rebounds (eight). Demir Conliffe tied for the game-high with three assists. Darius Mason Robertson and Josh Lincoln each earned one block for the Knights while Conliffe, Sparks, and Isiah Salim each recorded one steal.

LOOKING AHEAD

Western returns to action tomorrow when they face off against #14 Southern Oregon. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. MT.