BOZEMAN, Mont. – North Dakota fell 77-66 to Montana State inside the Worthington Arena on Friday night.

The Fighting Hawks (2-1) held a 29-27 lead at intermission but gave up a 19-4 run to the Bobcats (3-1) after the break. UND would claw their way back into the game at 50-46 by the end of the third quarter but was not able to overcome the deficit before falling 77-66.

Kacie Borowicz paced North Dakota with 20 points, scoring 12 of them in the fourth quarter alone. She also dished out a team-high four assists while grabbing four rebounds.

Joli Daninger just missed a double-double, chipping in 12 points and corralling nine rebounds. She also made a team leading three shots from deep.

Nakiyah Hurst was the third Hawk in double digits, netting 10 points while also hauling in four rebounds.

Claire Orth just missed double figures, adding seven points to go with seven boards.

Juliet Gordon cleaned the glass with a game high 13 rebounds while also adding four points.

In the game, Montana State scored 19 points off 24 North Dakota turnovers. The Fighting Hawks forced 19 Bobcat turnovers and exchanged them for eight points.

UND shot 36.0 percent from the field, made three triples and finished 6-of-12 at the charity stripe. Comparatively, MSU made 36.5 percent of its shots, added eight shots from distance and went 23-of-29 at the line. North Dakota finished with a 49-42 edge on the glass and outscored Montana State down low, 26-22.

North Dakota held a 14-13 edge on the scoreboard at the end of the first quarter. The Fighting Hawks had the biggest lead of the quarter at four points (14-10) after a triple from Daninger and two free throw makes from Gordon. A made shot from deep for Montana State closed the margin to one at 14-13 by the end of the opening stanza.

The Fighting Hawks would go on a 7-2 run midway through the second quarter, highlighted by two three-point makes from Maggie Manson to lead 25-20. UND built its lead up to six at 29-23 after a jumper from Orth before MSU closed the half on a 4-0 run to trim the deficit to 29-27.

Manson led North Dakota with six points at intermission, followed by Daninger with five. The Fighting Hawks shot 32.4 percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, while the Bobcats hit 23.5 percent of their shots. NoDak held a 31-19 advantage in rebounds.

UND jumped out to a 35-29 lead after intermission but would find itself trailing 48-39 moments later, following a 19-4 MSU run. North Dakota would close the gap in the final three minutes of the quarter with back-to-back layups from Orth and a triple from Daninger to cut the deficit to 50-46 at the end of the third.

By the midway point of the final stanza, the Bobcats led 66-56. Montana State would lead by as many as 13 points (77-64) in the quarter. Borowicz scored 12 of her 20 points in the final 10 minutes but the Hawks ultimately fell, 77-66.

North Dakota will now travel to Missoula to take on Montana on Sunday. Opening tip between the Fighting Hawks and Grizzles is set for 3 p.m. The game will air on ESPN+ and will also be carried on the Home of Economy Radio Network.

Postgame Notes

• North Dakota now trails 7-13 in the series against Montana State. UND is now 0-9 in Bozeman.
• The Fighting Hawks had 24 turnovers, with 17 of them coming in the first half.
• Juliet Gordon pulled in a career-high 13 rebounds.
• Nakiyah Hurst poured in a season-high 10 points to go with four rebounds and two assists.
• Rakiyah Beal scored her first point in a UND uniform.
• Kacie Borowicz led the team with 20 points, 12 of them coming in the fourth quarter. She has been the top scorer for UND in every game this season.

How It Happened

• Q1: UND 14, MSU 13
• Q2: UND 29, MSU 27
• Q3: MSU 50, UND 46
• Q4: MSU 77, UND 66