Bulldogs Win Overtime Thriller Over MSU-Northern

Lindsey Branch, UMW Sports Information

The Montana Western men's basketball team (8-6) opened up Frontier Conference play in memorable fashion with an overtime 85-84 victory over the MSU-Northern Lights.

Abi Adedo played a key role in the win tonight after he posted a career high of 30 points and had a team high of eight rebounds. 

"Frontier basketball games are incredibly hard to win and the margins are so small. Our guys saw that tonight and stayed together and found a way to get defensive stops in the second half" Head Coach Pat Jensen said. "Had some guys step up and made some huge plays offensively to get that win. Great team win against a very good Northern team."

How It Happened

MSU-Northern got the jump early on the Bulldogs, getting up to an 18-11 lead following seven from guard Zackry Martinez with 12:10 remaining in the first half.

UMW's Kayden Toldson hit a jumper that got momentum on the side of the Bulldogs to spark a 12-5 run. Capped with a jumper from Jalyn Stepney to tie the game at 23 all, the two teams began a three-minute battle for position.

Down one, Light's guard Dae'Kwon Watson converted on a four-point play opportunity to steal momentum back. The Lights continued on to take a 48-40 lead into the half.

Stepney and Adedo hit on back-to-back shots that got UMW back within two of the Lights with 17:40 on the clock. Despite the jump, MSU-Northern continued to stay at an arm's length away and got out to as much as a 12-point lead through the second half.

UMW caught fire late in the game, holding the Lights to just six points through the final seven minutes of the matchup. The Bulldogs racked up 18 points and capped regulation with a three-pointer from Michael Haverfield to send the Bulldogs into overtime with the Lights tied up at 78.

Quincy Taylor hit three from the charity stripe and a jumper from Stepney in overtime to put the Bulldogs in the perfect position to take the lead. Working with 12 seconds on the clock, Haverfield came in clutch for the second time of the night and hit a jumper in the key to take the lead with just a few seconds remaining.

UMW held the Lights in the final seconds and took their first conference win by a final score of 85-84.

Notables

• The Bulldogs recorded a season-high 35 made field goals in tonight's game and hit an impressive 52.2 percent from the field.

• Tonight's overtime win was the second overtime game between the two teams since 2002. The first was on Feb. 19, 2010 when the Bulldogs lost at home by three to the Lights.

• UMW's five turnovers in tonight's game was the second-lowest this season, just one more than the season low of four against Walla Walla back on Nov. 19.

• Adedo's career-high 30 points was fueled by his 13-22 shooting from the field. Adedo also led UMW in rebounds with eight.

• Haverfield topped 700 career points tonight (707 points) after he scored 12 points. He also had a team high of four steals.

• Stepney followed Adedo with 19 points and Taylor added 11 on the night.

Up Next

Montana Western moves to 1-0 in conference play and will travel to Carroll College next Thursday Jan. 11 for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off time.