by Bill Lamberty, MSU Communications
BOZEMAN, Mont. – RaeQuan Battle (Tulalip Tribes0 and Nick Gazelas each scored 13 points off the bench, combining on five 3-pointers and seven free throws, leading Montana State to a 70-64 win over Idaho in Worthington Arena on Saturday.
The two reserve guards provided exactly the spark MSU needed. “They were huge,” said Bobcat coach Danny Sprinkle. “All game I thought RaeQuan was great. He’s getting better and better. The last four games he’s played like an all-league player, he really has, and he’s propelled us. He’s given us another dimension.”
While Battle scored eight of his 13 points in the game’s first 28 minutes, Gazelas made just one two-point jumper in that stretch. After Battle’s big three, which gave the Bobcats and eight-point lead and on which Gazelas assisted, Gazelas hit two triples in the next three minutes then converted five free throws in the game’s final 16 seconds to close out the victory.
“Nick Gazelas hit some huge threes,” Sprinkle said. “They cut it to (a six-point lead) and he hit a big three.” MSU’s two sharpshooters combined to shoot 7-for-10 from the floor and 5-for-8 from the arc, while the rest of the team shot 13-for-38 and 3-for-11.
That the game was close throughout the second half seemed unlikely early. The Bobcats built a lead of 14 points in the game’s first 12 minutes, but Idaho used a 16-5 run to claw back into the contest. The Vandals missed nine of their first 11 field goal tries and turned the ball over three times in that span. From that point on, Idaho shot 20-for-44.
“Idaho, the way they can score and get the ball to the basket, they’re dangerous,” Sprinkle said. “Even if you’re up 14 or 15 they’re dangerous.”
Once the Vandals narrowed the gap to five at halftime, Montana State was able to extend it to double digits only once after the intermission. Jemeil King and Ethan Kilgore each scored 11 points for the Vandals in the second half. That was Kilgore’s total for the game, while King led all players with 15 points on the night. The Vandals out-rebounded MSU 42-29, but converted the team’s 11 offensive rebounds into only eight points.
Montana State turned the ball over only 11 times on the game to Idaho’s 17, with Xavier Bishop and Amin Adamu each snaring two steals. Bishop contributed five assists. Jubrile Belo, who scored 12 points and led MSU on the boards with eight, recorded his 1,000th point in his college career during the game.
