Sunday, December 11
Bozeman, MT
1:00 PM
Montana State University
73
vs
75
UC RIVERSIDE
Mo Fall blocked four shots Sunday
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Wild Finish Boosts Riverside Past Bobcats
12/11/2011 4:27:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Poor shooting start, wild finish doom MSU
Robert Smith, playing his first game of the season after gaining eligibility, hit a wild three-pointer with 0.7 seconds to play to cap a crazy sequence and give UC Riverside a 75-73 win over Montana State on Sunday.
Smith's flyer, off an offensive rebound he helped create after crashing from the top of the key, erased a four-point Bobcat lead with 13 seconds to play. Kevin Bradshaw's jumper with five seconds to play cut MSU's lead to 73-71. Tre Johnson committed a foul to create an and-one situation, and Bradshaw missed the free throw to set up the game-winning three-pointer.
“It was wild,” said Montana State coach Brad Huse of the closing sequence. “We had the game in hand, we made free throws, we just didn't finish it off. Credit Riverside, they got the right bounce and made the shot. We have nowhere to point fingers but ourselves.”
A game decided by a miracle finish seemed unlikely for most of the first half. The Bobcats hit just two of their first 13 shots, and UCR held a 33-18 lead five-and-a-half minutes before halftime. But a late flourish, capped by a Rod Singleton jumper and three free throws by Xavier Blount, cut the lead to five heading into the intermission.
“I thought our start put us in a bad spot,” Huse said. “We played from behind for most of the game, and you expend a lot of energy playing that way.”
Blount led MSU on the way back, scoring 14 of his 21 points in the second half, largely on the strength of his 11-for-13 effort from the line. MSU paraded to the free throw line 52 times on the strength of Riverside's aggressive defense, converting a school-record 40 of them.
MSU's first lead of the second half came with 6:47 to play, and the teams traded leads thereafter. The Bobcats opened their biggest lead, 64-59, with 4:13 to play on Blount's trey. MSU held that lead until Smith's three-pointer.
Montana State falls to 5-4 on the season, while Riverside raised its record to 3-5. MSU plays again next Sunday at Pepperdine.
Smith's flyer, off an offensive rebound he helped create after crashing from the top of the key, erased a four-point Bobcat lead with 13 seconds to play. Kevin Bradshaw's jumper with five seconds to play cut MSU's lead to 73-71. Tre Johnson committed a foul to create an and-one situation, and Bradshaw missed the free throw to set up the game-winning three-pointer.
“It was wild,” said Montana State coach Brad Huse of the closing sequence. “We had the game in hand, we made free throws, we just didn't finish it off. Credit Riverside, they got the right bounce and made the shot. We have nowhere to point fingers but ourselves.”
A game decided by a miracle finish seemed unlikely for most of the first half. The Bobcats hit just two of their first 13 shots, and UCR held a 33-18 lead five-and-a-half minutes before halftime. But a late flourish, capped by a Rod Singleton jumper and three free throws by Xavier Blount, cut the lead to five heading into the intermission.
“I thought our start put us in a bad spot,” Huse said. “We played from behind for most of the game, and you expend a lot of energy playing that way.”
Blount led MSU on the way back, scoring 14 of his 21 points in the second half, largely on the strength of his 11-for-13 effort from the line. MSU paraded to the free throw line 52 times on the strength of Riverside's aggressive defense, converting a school-record 40 of them.
MSU's first lead of the second half came with 6:47 to play, and the teams traded leads thereafter. The Bobcats opened their biggest lead, 64-59, with 4:13 to play on Blount's trey. MSU held that lead until Smith's three-pointer.
Montana State falls to 5-4 on the season, while Riverside raised its record to 3-5. MSU plays again next Sunday at Pepperdine.
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