MISSOULA, Mont. - In the final game of the Lady Griz Holiday Classic, the University of North Dakota fell to host Montana 60-39. UND trailed by just eight to open the second half, but a big 21-2 run midway through the second half propelled the Grizzlies to their first win over UND since 1984.
With the loss, North Dakota dropped to 6-8 while Montana moved to 7-6 heading into the New Year.
Junior guard Nicole Smart (Ada, Minn.) led UND with 10 points on 3-for-7 shooting from the field, including a three-pointer, and a perfect 4-for-4 performance at the foul line. She also added five rebounds (three defensive) and a steal. Sophomore forward Megan Lauck (Shoreview, Minn.) finished with nine points and true freshman guard Brianna Williams (Minneapolis, Minn.) came away with eight. Sophomore center Allyssa Wall (North Sioux City, S.D.) led UND on the boards with nine rebounds (seven defensive).
North Dakota shot a season-low 24 percent (12-for-50) from the field and went 4-for-18 (22.2 percent) from three-point range and 11-for-14 (78.6 percent) at the free throw line.
With 13 points, Katie Baker led a trio of Grizzlies to finish in double figures as she went 4-for-11 from the field, 1-for-1 from three-point range, and 4-for-4 at the line. Torry Hill finished with 11 points and Kenzie De Boer came away with 10. De Boer led all players with a trio of baskets from behind the three-point line.
Montana shot 19-for-58 (32.8 percent) from the field, 7-for-15 (46.7 percent) from behind the arc, and 15-for-17 (88.2 percent) at the line. Montana won the rebounding battle 45-35, scored 11 points off of second chances, and score 19 points off of UND's 18 turnovers.
De Boer opened the scoring for the Grizzlies with a three-pointer at 18:43. Three minutes later, Williams dropped in the first bucket for UND. However, Williams' basket was answered quickly as Alyssa Smith hit from three-point range to make it 6-2 Montana (16:29).
A three-pointer by junior guard Carly Rothfusz (Eden Prairie, Minn.) at 15:26 pulled UND to within one, but Montana answered with a 12-3 run to lead 18-8 with 10:52 remaining in the half. Smart paused the run with a pair from the free throw line, but with yet another three-pointer, the Griz set up a 6-0 clip to nab a 14-point advantage (24-10) with 7:51 on the clock. After trading baskets, Lauck hit a jumper off of a pass from senior guard Charnise Mothershed (Phoenix, Ariz.) to set up a 6-0 UND run to end the half.
Heading into the break, North Dakota trialed Montana 26-18.
With 20 minutes back on the clock, Hill hit first for the Griz (18:47), but after snatching the ball from UM's Jordan Sullivan, Smart provided UND's answer with a jumper in the paint at 17:52. With a pair from the line from De Boer (17:15), Montana regained its double figure lead and held it for over nine minutes.
At the 9:45 mark Smart hit from long range to make it 39-30, bringing UND back within single digits. However, a three from Hill 15 seconds later set up Montana's game-winning run as the Griz put together a 21-2 clip to lead 60-32 with just 3:37 remaining in the game. Inside the run, Baker scored nine, De Boer five, Hill three, and Sullivan and Tianna Ware each added two. Wall scored UND's lone two points with a jumper at 4:11.
UND ended the game with a 7-0 run as Mothershed hit a pair of free throws and a three-pointer, and Wall netted yet another two points.
North Dakota will open the New Year in Moscow, Idaho, as it takes on the Idaho Vandals for the third and final time this season. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT on Jan. 3 at the Cowan Spectrum.
Lady Griz Classic All-Tournament Team
- Katie Baker, Montana (MVP)
- Torry Hill, Montana
- Alyssa Charlston, Idaho
- Jamierra Faulkner, Southern Mississippi
- Madi Buck, North Dakota
- UND -
