BOZEMAN, Mont. (Jan. 25, 2018) – Junior
Torry Johnson dropped in a career-best scoring total for the second-straight game with 27 points and the Northern Arizona men's basketball team snapped a seven-game losing streak with a hard-fought 77-75 road victory at Montana State on Thursday night at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman.
The game was tightly contested throughout as it featured a total of four lead changes and nine ties with the final deadlock coming at 59-59 with 7:45 left in regulation. NAU took control from there as it took the lead for good at 60-59 on a free throw by Johnson and opened up a six-point edge at 70-64 with 3:05 left. The 'Jacks held on despite a late push by the Bobcats that got them within one possession with 15 seconds remaining.
NAU played the game with only eight players as leading scorer
JoJo Anderson (12.4 ppg), junior
Corey Brown and freshman
Lenell Henry each missed the game due to injuries.
"I am just so happy for our young men," NAU head coach
Jack Murphy said. "Our guys battled and fought and we have been so close. The last game against Idaho was about as frustrated as I have been because you play a great team at home, lead for a large portion of the game and don't pull it out. I was really proud of our guys tonight. We know what we have in our team as coaches and I think the players are beginning to know it as well."
While Johnson kept the 'Jacks close in the first half with 17 of his 27 points, NAU presence in the paint and its defensive effort is what allowed it to take control in the second half.
The Lumberjacks scored 20 of their 22 points in the paint in the second half and one of the most critical plays came on a finish by
Isaiah Thomas in the lane that resulted in a three-point play as he drew contact and hit the ensuing free throw that gave Northern Arizona a six-point lead at 74-68 with 49 ticks left on the clock.
NAU also clamped down on the defensive end as it limited Montana State to a 41.9 percent (13-of-31) clip from the field in the second half and held the Bobcats' leading scorer and NBA prospect Tyler Hall to just seven points on 2-of-8 shooting (1-of-7 from three-point range) for the game.
Sophomore
Brooks DeBisschop picked up the slack for the 'Jacks on the glass as he played for 39-plus minutes and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds – his fourth game this season with double-digit rebounds and second straight overall.
Johnson, who has registered 52 points over the last two contests, led a total of three 'Jacks who finished with double-figure points. Freshman
Karl Harris and
Gino Littles each added 14. Littles connected on 4-of-5 attempts from long distance and has now hit a total of 14 three-pointers over the last five games.
As a team, NAU shot 51.0 percent (26-of-51) from the field – its third-best total this season. The 'Jacks are now 4-1 on the year when they shoot 45 percent or better overall.
The win moves the Lumberjacks overall record to 4-17 and 1-7 in Big Sky play. Montana State lost for the fourth straight game and drops to 11-10 overall and 4-4 in the conference.
Three of NAU's four wins this season have come in true road games.
Devonte Klines led the Bobcats in the loss with 15 points. Sam Neumann added 14 points, including four shots from beyond the arc after entering the game with just one make from three-point range this season.
The Lumberjacks conclude their current two-game road swing through the Treasure State on Saturday night with a showdown at Big Sky leader Montana in a 7 p.m. MST tip from Dahlberg Arena in Missoula.
Saturday's 'Jacks-Grizzlies contest will be broadcast live on Pluto.TV (channel 237) and the Lumberjack Radio Network beginning with the pregame show at 6:30 p.m. MST.
