Griz men down NAU in conference opener
Daily Inter Lake | Daily Inter-Lake | UPDATED 3 hours, 4 minutes AGO
MISSOULA — Brooklyn Hicks scored 15 points off the bench and Montana had five players in double-figures in a 78-64 victory over Northern Arizona in Big Sky men's basketball Thursday.
The win ends a two-game losing streak for the Griz and puts them at 7-7 for the season, 1-0 in Big Sky play. The Lumberjacks fall to 6-8 overall and 0-1 in conference.
Tyler Thompson and Kenyon Aguino added 14 points each with Thompson adding six boards. Te’Jon Sawyer had 13 and six rebounds, while Money Williams tallied 11 with five assists.
Ryan Abelman led the Lumberjacks with 13 points and five rebounds.
Montana started strong, using a 9-0 run to jump in front 20-14 midway through the first half.
The Lumberjacks scored eight of the next 10 to tie the game at 22, before jumping ahead 32-27 late in the half.
Hicks beat the first half buzzer to make it 34 apiece at the half.
Montana slowly grew a lead through the second half with Williams putting Montana ahead 64-54 with six minutes to play.
Thompson hit a dagger triple with 2:25 left that gave the Griz a 74-60 lead.