Box Score SPEARFISH, S.D. – A career-best 31 points from Riley Ryan and 24 points from Nick Ongarato were not enough as the Black Hills State University men's basketball team fell 82-80 to Montana State University – Billings Saturday afternoon.
Jace Anderson hit the game winning shot for MSUB with one second on the clock. Black Hills State (1-2) could not get a shot off before time expired to either tie or take the lead.
The Green and Gold opened an 11-point lead with 7:19 remaining in the second half behind a 9-0 run that started with a jump shot form Patrick Mendes. After forcing MSUB into a missed shot, Ryan found himself in the paint for the easy bucket.
The run continued with a 3-point basket from Ongarato and concluded with a layup from Wyatt Krogman for the 71-60 lead.
However, MSU Billings was red hot in the second half, shooting 68.2 percent from the field in the second stanza, as they pulled within one point at 73-72 with 4:29 on the clock.
The two teams battled back-and-forth including Black Hills State tying the game at 80-all with 10 seconds left when Ongarato hit a driving jump shot.
However, it was Anderson's final two points of his 13 points on the night that took the sting out of the Green and Gold.
The home Yellow Jackets dominated the paint scoring 34 points while keeping the visiting Yellowjackets to outside shots with only 14 points in the paint. Ryan's performance came on 12-of-14 shooting, including 4-of-5 from deep, while Ongarato shot 10-of-14 from the field. The rest of the team went a combined 8-of-22 from the field.
Krogman tallied a season-best eight assists as he now averages six assists per game.
Montana State – Billings placed five of their seven players who played in double digits. Marc Matthews led the way with 24 points while Christian Evans scored 17 points, After Anderson's 13 points, Emmanuel Johnson and Jordan Perry each scored 11 points apiece.
Although MSUB shot 68.2 percent in the second half, Black Hills State actually shot the ball better throughout the game on 30-of-50 shooting, good for 60 percent. Montana State – Billings shot 29-of-49 for 59.2 percent from the field.
Black Hills State hosts South Dakota School of Mines in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opener on Thursday, December 3, with tipoff slated for 7:30 p.m.
