Portland St. upsets Big Sky champ Montana in overtime, 77-74
MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — Robert McCoy tipped in a missed 3-pointer in the final minute and Holland Woods knocked down two clutch free throws as Portland State snapped a five-game losing streak by beating defending Big Sky Conference champion Montana in Missoula for just the fourth time in 22 years, pulling out a 77-74 victory in overtime on Saturday night.
Montana came into the game on a hot streak that saw the Grizzlies score 85 points or more in each of their four straight wins. Portland State, meanwhile, had struggled through a month-long slump and was playing its third game in six days.
Woods hit a 3-pointer with :40 left in regulation to tie the game at 69-69 and missed a jumper to win with a second left.
Michael Oguine tipped in a missed 3-pointer by Bobby Moorehead to get Montana within one, 75-74 with :28 left in overtime, but Woods drew the foul and hit both free throws to push the lead back to three, 77-74. Oguine missed a 3 attempt with :10 left and Kendal Manuel missed a 3-point try at the buzzer.
The last time Portland State (6-8, 1-2) won at Montana (10-5, 3-1) was a 108-56 blowout win on March 1, 2008, the largest margin of victory over a Division I opponent in school history. Since then, the Grizzlies had won 16 of 20 meetings.
Woods finished with 28 points and was 13 of 15 from the free throw line. Jamie Orme had 13 points off the bench and McCoy finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Manuel came off the Montana bench to score 22 points, hitting 10 of 10 from the line. Oguine added 15 points and Jamar Akoh scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
