Bengals Take Down Montana State on Senior Night

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POCATELLO, Idaho- The Idaho State University men's basketball team defeated Montana State 76-69 in its final home game of the 2015-16 season. With the win Idaho State (15-13, 10-6 BSC) moved into a four way tie for third place in the Big Sky Conference standings with two games to play. It also guarantees the Bengals will finish with a winning record in conference play for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
 
Ethan Telfair scored 31 points, his third consecutive 30 point game, grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists to lead Idaho State. Geno Luzcando added 14 points and senior Ben Wilson finished with five points and six rebounds in his final home game.
 
"This was a good way to send our seniors out," Idaho State coach Bill Evans said. "I'm excited for them and excited for our team and program as well."  
 
The Bengals started off slow as Montana State (12-16, 7-9 BSC) opened up the game on an 8-0 run in the first four minutes. ISU countered with a 10-0 run in the next three minutes to take a 10-8 lead with 13:27 left in the first half.
 
The Bengals used another 10-0 run to take a 24-16 lead with 5:47 remaining in the half. ISU took a 39-31 lead into the locker room.
 
Telfair led the way in the first half scoring 16 points, 12 of which came from behind the three point line. Freshman guard Tyler Hall and senior guard Marcus Colbert scored 10 apiece for Montana State in the half.
 
Hall took over in the second half for Montana State scoring 17 points, including eight straight to get the Bobcats within one at 47-46 with 15:47 left in the game.
 
The ISU lead reached as many as eight after a three by Gary Chivichyan gave the Bengals a 60-52 lead with 10:17 remaining in the game.
 
A pair of free throws from junior forward Sarp Gobeloglu tied the game at 65 and a runner in the lane by Hall gave Montana State a 67-66 lead with 4:14 left in the contest.
 
The Bengals answered right back with an 8-0 run in the next 2:57 to take a 74-67 lead. The run was capped off by a three from Telfair and a steal and a slam by Luzcando which brought the 2,566 fans to their feet.
 
"I'm proud of my guys," said Evans. "They hung in there, kept working and stuck it out until the end."
 
The Bengals improved to 12-0 when shooting 45 percent or better from the field, finishing at 46 percent and 43 percent from behind the three point line. Montana State shot 41 percent and out rebounded the Bengals 38-33.
 
Hall finished with 27 points for the Bobcats and Colbert added 12. Junior guard Quinton Everett secured a game high nine rebounds.
 
"I'm happy we got the win for our team and our seniors," said Telfair. "We are grateful for all the fans who came out all season and supported us. They really helped us out a lot tonight."
 
Idaho State finishes the regular season at Eastern Washington on March 3 and at Idaho on March 5. The Big Sky Conference Tournament begins March 8 in Reno, Nev.
 
Notes

• Telfair continues to climb his way up the ISU single-season record book.
• He now ranks seventh with 149 assists.
• He now ranks thirteenth with 554 points.
• He now ranks sixth with 178 made free throws.
• He now ranks fourth with 61 steals.