by BILLINGS, Mont. – A series of late three pointers in the final minutes gave Rocky Mountain College the edge it needed to overcome the Yellowstone Christian College Centurions in an 86-75 win.
The Centurions jumped to a 22-9 lead midway through the first period, but Rocky responded with a 30-6 run to enter the half up 39-28.
In the second half, the Centurions tied the game 50-50 from which both teams played close until the final minutes. Down 70-68 with nearly three minutes left in the game, Sam Vining landed a three pointer to give Rocky the lead at 71-70. The crucial points kickstarted Rocky’s offense who quickly drained three more baskets from beyond the arc to jump to an 80-75 lead. The Battlin’ Bears led from there on out.
All five of Rocky’s starters scored in the double digits. Draining 5-of-7 from deep, Rocky’s Vining led the team with 17 points. Grant Wallace contributed 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Christian Beeke recorded 13 points while the pair of Brandon The Boy (Gros Ventre) and Clayton Ladine each posted 12 point performances. Ladine led the team in assists with eight.
Yellowstone Christian’s Derrian Reed posted a game-high 27 points to lead the Centurions offensive efforts. Devin Jones posted 19 points while Chris Pendley had 16 points and a team-high nine rebounds..
Rocky finished the night shooting an even 40 percent from the floor and landing 45.2 percent from deep. The Centurions shot 39.7 percent and landed 9-of-26 from beyond the arc.
The Battlin’ Bears will next play Montana State University on November 9 in Bozeman, Montana. The game will count as an exhibition for the Battlin’ Bears.
