Jan. 20, 2011

Box Score

Senior center Brian Qvale set conference and school records in career blocks and he also had his third double-double in a row , as The University of Montana Grizzlies defeated the Idaho State Bengals 75-65 in a Big Sky Conference game Thursday evening in ISU's Reed Gym.

Qvale, a 6-11 senior from Williston, N.D. had a block at the 15:59 mark of the first half, giving him 213 in his career, and he passed former Griz center Daren Engellant (212 blocks, 1988-92) for new Big Sky and Montana records. Qvale finished with 3 blocks in the game, giving him 215 in his career.

The Grizzlies improve to 14-5 overall and 6-1 in the Big Sky, while the Bengals go to 5-13/1-5.

Montana has now won nine of its last 10, and hosts intrastate rival Montana State in Missoula Saturday night.

Despite the 10-point margin of the final score, ISU made if difficult on UM late in the contest.

After taking a slim 30-28 halftime lead, Montana took an eight-point (49-41) lead with 11:16 left to play on a jumper by junior forward Derek Selvig. The Griz continued to hold their lead for the next several minutes, and went up 59-52 with 6:50 remaining when junior guard Jordan Wood nailed a three-point shot.

But, ISU rallied and out-scored UM 9-0 over the next two-plus minutes, and took a 61-59 lead with 4:04 left to play on a pair of free throws by senior guard Broderick Gilchrest.

Montana, answered though, and tied the game up for the 10th and final time at 61-all with 3:55 left on a lay-up by junior forward Art Steward.

The Griz went on a run of their own after Steward's game-tying bucket, and out-scored the Bengals 14-4 the rest the game, thanks to five points each by Selvig and sophomore guard Will Cherry, and a pair of free throws by both Qvale and Steward.

Qvale had team-highs of 19 points and 10 rebounds. He also registered double-doubles last week at home against Eastern Washington (13/12) and Portland State (17/14).

Also in double figures for the Grizzlies were Steward (15), Cherry (14), and Selvig (10). Cherry added 5 assists and 3 steals. UM had solid contributions off the bench, as sophomore forward Mathias Ward scored 8 points and grabbed 4 rebounds, and Wood added 5 points and 4 boards.

Gilchrest led ISU with 19 points, while ISU senior center Deividas Busma had a team-high 10 rebounds.

The Grizzlies and Bobcats (9-7/5-1) square off for the 282nd time Saturday in Dahlberg Arena, with a 7:05 p.m. tip-off, on a game that will be televised statewide on the MTN Network. ISU hosts the Bobcats next Monday.