MISSOULA, Mont. – The duo of Martin Breunig and Jordan Gregory led Montana to a 74-63 win over North Dakota in a Big Sky matchup Saturday at Dahlberg Arena. Breunig scored 14 of his game-high 23 points in the second half and Gregory added 19 points for the Grizzlies (5-7, 2-0 BSC).

Junior Terrel de Rouen scored a career-high 17 points to lead UND (5-8, 1-1 BSC), while sophomore Quinton Hooker added 13 points and Lenny Antwi chipped in with 12 points off the bench.

The Griz used two key runs and shot 55.3 percent from the field, while also holding a 33-20 edge on the glass to aid in what was their fifth straight win over UND in this building.

Those runs were a quick 5-0 spurt to end the first half, which saw Montana take a 35-29 lead. Gregory then sparked an 8-0 run early in the second half with back-to-back treys and Breunig's play down low created enough separation for the Griz to hold off a late charge by UND.

“I thought we played well for stretches and I liked our effort, but we did not come up with a big stop or get a big rebound there in the second half when we needed one,” UND head coach Brian Jones said. “Those are things you have to do if you want to get a win in a tough building on the road.”

Junior Estan Tyler squared things up at 8-8 on a pair of free throws as the game was tight in the opening four minutes, but the Griz used a 7-0 run as UND went nearly five minutes without a field goal.

Mario Dunn would give UM its largest lead of the opening 20 minutes at 21-10 thanks to a 3-pointer from the wing at the midway point. UND kept the Griz off the scoreboard for the next three minutes and shaved six points off that deficit before Gregory knocked down a pair of free throws to end that stretch.

UND kept clawing away at the lead as a corner 3-pointer by Antwi made it a 27-23 contest with just under four minutes to play and de Rouen would knock down a transition trey with 90 seconds left to pull the visitors within a point at 30-29.

De Rouen finished with 10 first-half points, but the Griz would get the final five points of the stanza to push their halftime advantage to six at 35-29. Gregory capped that closing spurt by burying a 3-pointer with six seconds on the clock to give him 10 first-half points as well.

UND got to the free throw line 13 times in the opening 20 minutes, but managed to sink only eight of those attempts. The club would finish the game 17-for-24 (70.8), while the Grizzlies went 16-for-22 (72.7) from the stripe.

Montana shot 52 percent from the floor, while UND knocked down 45 percent in a half that saw both teams turn it over nine times. The Griz would improve on that mark in the second half, shooting 59 percent.

UND started the second half on a positive note, pulling within four at 42-38 on a pair of free throws by Hooker, but Gregory and company would not allow them to get any closer. Gregory made back-to-back 3-pointers before Dustin Hobaugh knocked down a corner 3-pointer for UND.

After that, Breunig took over for the Griz as his play down low gave the home team's lead would grow to as many as 17 with just over six minutes to play. UND's late charge could only get the Green and White back within eight in the closing minute. UND shot 46.5 percent from the floor with de Rouen going 5-for-9 and Hooker going 4-for-8 to lead that effort.

UND will return home for a three-game Big Sky homestand, which begins Thursday vs. Sacramento State. Tipoff against the Hornets is set for 7 p.m. at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.

-- UND --