HELENA, Mont. – The Carroll College men's basketball team jumped out to a 24-10 lead and survived a comeback bid to pick up a 72-63 win over Montana Tech Thursday evening at the PE Center.
The win was the fourth-straight for the Saints and gives Carroll (18-8, 7-5 Frontier Conference) a half game lead over Lewis-Clark for second place in the conference standings behind first-place Montana-Western.
"I am really happy for the fellows," head coach
Carson Cunningham said. "I think a lot of folks have counted them out at different times. But the Fighting Saints just keep battling. Their chemistry and competitive spirit is a joy to watch."
The Saints jumped out to a 10-2 lead and continued to build their advantage until they led 24-10 with 12:24 left in the first half. The Diggers then began to chip away at the Carroll lead, cutting it to 36-34 with 21 seconds left in the half.
Jake Hollifield hit a bucket with 16 seconds left to give the Saints a 38-34 lead at the break.
Carroll started the second half with a 6-0 run, highlighted by back-to-back Oredigger turnovers that gave Carroll a 44-34 lead.
Montana Tech (13-12, 4-7 FC) battled back and cut the lead to 49-47 with 13:12 left in the game. The two teams then traded baskets with the Saints never gaining a lead greater than five points.
The Diggers cut the lead to 59-58 with 6:39 left in the game. The Saints outscored the Montana Tech 13-4 the rest of the way to put the Diggers away.
"Montana Tech is a tough team. I'm impressed by the Saints' ability to pull it out," Cunningham said. "I've got to give a shout to assistant coaches Carlito Labarda,
Dan Pearson, James MacIntyre, and Nick Jones for their efforts."
Carroll had four players in double figures led by
Oliver Carr with 14 points,
Zayn Kirkendoll had 13 points and
Zach Taylor and
Ryan Imhoff scored 12 points each.
Montana Tech was led by Trent Thompson with 34 points and Adam Greger with 17.
Both teams shot very well, the Diggers were 24-of-43 (55.8 percent) from the field and the Saints were slightly better at 25-of-44 (56.8 percent).
Tech outrebounded the Saints 21-18.
The Saints struggled early in the conference season but the young Saints have found their groove over the past six games. Carroll has won five of their last six with their only loss coming at the hands of 12th ranked Montana-Western.
The Saints host No. 21 Lewis-Clark Saturday at the PE Center. The Warriors fell Thursday night on the road at Rocky Mountain 90-87 but defeated the Saints 80-65 in Lewiston in this season's first matchup.
The game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
