BOZEMAN, Montana – Idaho State men's basketball saw its road struggles continue Thursday night, falling 62–74 at Montana State inside Worthington Arena. The loss marked Idaho State's fourth defeat in its last six games, as the Bengals coudl not find their rhytm offensively against a physical Bobcat defense.
Idaho State finished the night shooting 40.7 percent from the field, its third-worst shooting performance of the season, while the 62 points scored also represented the third-lowest scoring output for the Bengals this year. Montana State capitalized late, shooting 54.5 percent (6-11) from three-point range in the second half to pull away.
Despite the loss, the night featured several notable individual milestones for Idaho State, including Evan Otten recording the 100th block of his career, moving him into fifth place all-time on Idaho State's career blocks leaderboard, to go along with Gus Etchison scoring a new career high, and Caleb Van De Griend recording his 6th double-double of the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Idaho State opened the game with early confidence, taking a brief 3–0 lead on a Martin Kheil three-pointer just 25 seconds in. The Bobcats responded quickly, stringing together a 12-2 run between the 18:55 and 14:28 mark of the first half to take control early.
Montana State extended its lead to six midway through the half, but Idaho State answered with energy off the bench. Gus Etchison sparked a response with three consecutive baskets, fueling a 9–3 Bengal run from 11:22 to 9:49 that trimmed the deficit to three.
The Bengals stayed within striking distance for much of the opening half, tying the game at 32–32 with 4:13 remaining after Cheikh Sow knocked down a pair of free throws. Montana State closed the half strong, however, scoring the final six points to take a 38–34 lead into the break.
The second half opened with Idaho State briefly pulling even at 38–38 following a Jamison Guerra jumper at the 19:10 mark. From there, Montana State seized momentum, putting together a 21-8 run between 18:52 and 11:18 to stretch the lead back to a 13 points.
After another Bengal push cut the deficit to five, the Bobcats delivered the decisive blow. Montana State rattled off an 15–5 run, pushing the lead out of reach for the Bengals.
The Bengals continued to battle, but Montana State answered each push, closing the game on a steady stream of perimeter shooting and second-chance opportunities to secure the 12-point win.
PLAYER STATS
Jamison Guerra led the starting group, finishing with 10 points, on 2-3 shooting from beyond the arc. Martin Kheil would total nine points on 3-6 shooting from deep to go along with two rebounds, while Connor Hollenebck recorded three points, four rebounds, and one assist.
Evan Otten tallied four points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two blocks, while the final Bengal starter, Lachlan Brewer, would put up one points, one rebound, and one steal.
Off the bench for the Bengals, Gus Etchison and Caleb Van De Griend would leave their fingerprints all over this game. Etchison would record a career-high 20 points on 9-16 shooting from the floor, a season-high five assists, one steal, and one block in 21 minutes of action. Caleb Van De Griend recorded his 6th double-double of the season, totaling 11 points and game-high 10 rebounds in 20 minutes of play.
Cheikh Sow continued his good stretch of recent play with four points, seven rebounds, one block, and one steal in 21 minutes of play, while Quin Patterson and Blake Daberkow would also chip in valuable minutes for Idaho State.
TEAM STATS
Idaho State shot 22-of-54 (40.7 percent) from the field and 7-of-25 (28.0 percent) from three-point range, marking the Bengals' third-worst shooting performance of the season. The Bengals also went 11-of-18 (61.1 percent) at the free-throw line, their second-worst shooting night from the charity stripe this season. The Bengals would end tonight's contest with 32 rebounds, nine assists, four blocks, three steals, and committed nine turnovers.
Montana State finished at 43.8 percent (28-64) shooting overall and 40.7 percent (11-27) from three, hitting six triples in the second half. The Bobcats matched Idaho State with their own 32 rebounds, to go along with 11 assists, five steals, one block, and six turnovers committed.
BENGAL BITES
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Evan Otten reached 100 career blocks, moving into fifth all-time in program history.
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Gus Etchison set a career high in scoring with 20 points & a new career high in FGM making nine of his 16 shot attempts
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Caleb Van De Griend recorded his sixth double-double of the season.
