BILLINGS, Mont. - The Nanooks men's basketball team dropped a road game at Montana State Billings on Thursday, Jan. 23. With the loss, the men's hoops team drops to 9-8, 5-3 GNAC.

How it Happened
The first half was played to a 42-42 halftime tie after an evenly matched offensive showing on both sides of the ball. In the second half, the Nanooks' offense quieted down while MSUB continued its strong showing. The Yellow Jackets ran away in the second, outscoring the 'Nooks 41-28 to grab the 83-70 victory.

Elyon Zevenbergen got the scoring started with a layup 13 seconds into the game. After a free throw and another layup from Zevenbergen, Ketan Sidhu made it 8-6 Nanooks with the first three of the night for Alaska. Zevenbergen extended the lead to 10-6 and had seven points in the opening 2:54. Back-to-back makes from MSUB gave the Yellow Jackets a 13-10 lead. They grew it to five before Elyon Zevenbergen connected from deep, pulling Alaska back within two. The 'Nooks would take the lead back on a Griffin Effenberger three but a quick response from MSUB forced another tie. The two sides traded baskets until the 3:32 mark when Chris Lee connected from deep to make it 36-31 Alaska. He answered two possessions later with another three, making it 39-33 but down the stretch in the first, Billings tied it at 42-42.

Out of the halftime break, the two sides traded buckets immediately. At the 18:21 mark, MSUB grabbed the lead on a Brendon Johnson layup and never looked back. Their lead quickly grew to seven at 53-46 before Sidhu and Lee hit back-to-back shots to pull Alaska to within a pair. Billings answered back with a 12-0 run, quickly taking a 14-point lead with 11:34 remaining. The Nanooks chipped away at the Yellow Jacket lead, pulling back to within 10, but could not get the deficit within single digits, eventually falling 83-70.

Inside the Numbers

• Chris Lee and Elyon Zevenbergen had 14 points each. Lee went 4-10 from beyond the arc, and 5-11 from the floor. He added three assists and picked up three steals.
• Zevenbergen finished the night with a double-double, adding 10 rebounds to his 14 points.
• Griffin Effenberger led the Nanooks with 15 points on the night. He went 5-8 from the floor, all coming from three. He added seven rebounds, and a block coming off of the bench. 
• The Nanooks shot 43.1% from the floor and 41.2% from three, going 14-34 from deep. 
• The Nanooks outscored the Yellow Jackets 18-7 in bench points. They also outscored MSUB 15-9 in second-chance points. 

What's to Come
The Nanooks travel to Seattle, Wash. on Saturday, Jan. 25 to face Seattle Pacific at Royal Brougham Pavilion.

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