BILLINGS, Mont. – Senior guard Brandon Davis' career-high 30-point performance wasn't enough for the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team to pull out win in a gritty, hard-fought game against the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets, as the Nooks fell 99-94 in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup at the Alterowitz Gymnasium on Saturday night.
Davis connected on 11-of-15 shots from the floor and drained 4-of-5 shots from three-point territory, while also knocking down all four free throws. In a hot night for the Spokane, Washington native, Davis also added six rebounds, four assists and three steals in his full 40 minutes on the floor.
"What a game! It came down to a couple of key possessions late in the night and a couple tough turnovers on our part," head coach Mick Durham said on Saturday. "I'm impressed with our 19 assists and only 11 turnovers. The night had great flow and a tough pace by both teams but give MSUB credit; they made all their late free throws to sneak away from us. Brandon had a monster night, playing all 40 minutes and scoring 30 points, we can't ask for more than that from one our senior guys."
The Nanooks fall to 7-10 overall with the loss and are now 2-6 in conference play, while the Yellowjackets improve to 11-5 overall and 6-2 in league play, extending their winning-streak to three games.
Although it was a close game, the Nooks actually came out to an extremely slow start with the Yellowjackets commanding the pace early on. In a game that featured over a dozen lead changes, Alaska didn't take the lead away from the Yellowjackets until the18:15 mark of the second half. MSUB had a 12-1 run and a 20-3 run to start the game, as the Nooks shot 0-of-8 from the field and found themselves down 17 points just five minutes into the first half.
Davis proved to be the game-changer on Saturday night, as he scored nine of Alaska's points in a 12-3 run that made it a 30-20 game, with the Nooks continuing to chip away before going into intermission only point short, trailing the Yellowjackets 40-39.
Coming back from halftime proved to be a battle for both teams, as Alaska shot 53.8 percent from the field for the remainder of the game and drained 11-of-24 buckets from behind the arc. In total, Alaska scored 55 points in the second half alone but MSUB rebuttaled with a 59-point second half. The Yellowjackets went 8-of-8 from the free throw line to seal the late victory.
Davis wasn't alone in his efforts on Saturday, as a trio of other Nanooks scored double-digits as well. Senior forward Zach Pederson shot 8-of-15 from the floor and 1-of-1 from the free throw line to record 19 points and a team-high eight rebounds.
Senior forward Bangaly Kaba shot 6-of-13 from the field and went 5-of-8 from the free throw line to register 18 points and six rebounds, while senior guard Nahjee Matlock posted 11 points and a game-high seven assists.
As a team, Alaska shot 47.9 percent from the floor (35-of-73), 45.8 percent from behind the arc (11-of-24) and 72.2 percent from the free throw line (13-of-18). Alaska collected 24 points off of turnovers, 46 points in the paint and 16 points from the bench.
MSUB was led by Preston Beverly, who shot 9-of-20 from the floor and made 6-of-10 free throws for a 28-point night, finishing the game with a double-double with 10 rebounds. The 'Jackets shot 50.8 percent from the floor (32-of-63), 50 percent from the three-point line (14-of-28) and 80.8 percent from the free throw line (21-of-26).
"Ended a tough stretch of six of eight league games on the road," Durham concluded," but I'm very proud of how we've competed away from the Patty Center and looking forward to some home games."
The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team returns home for a two-game GNAC stint against the Concordia Cavaliers on Thursday, Jan. 19 and the Western Oregon Wolves on Saturday, Jan. 21. Both games will take place at the Alaska Airlines Court with tip-off slated for 7pm AKST.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.
