BILLINGS, Mont. – The Rocky Mountain College men's basketball team held off a late rally from Dickinson State to secure a 73-62 win on Friday night at the Hampton Inn/Wells Fargo Green & Gold Classic.
 
Rocky (8-5) opened the game with a 17-2 run and held a double-digit lead through the midway point of the second half. Dickinson State (8-5) continued to chip away and with 5:52 remaining, they had the game within 62-60.
 
Austin Payne would spark a 9-0 run by the Battlin' Bears with five points in the team's next two possessions. He hit a 3-pointer from the wing and then after recording a blocked shot at the other end, Payne hit a free-throw line jumper on the third Rocky shot of the possession.
 
While Payne came through down the stretch, Jared Samuelson helped Rocky build its 18-point advantage. The sophomore scored a game-high 27 points – his third 20-point effort in the past four games – while collecting 15 rebounds. Samuelson made 11 of 18 from the field and blocked three shots.
 
Rocky ended the game shooting 43.1 percent from the floor and they overcame a 5 of 28 night from beyond the arc with 34 points in the paint. They finished with 20 assists to 11 turnovers and notched 17 fast break points.
 
Payne finished the night with 18 points and six rebounds. He made 8 of 13 from the field and added three blocked shots.
 
The Battlin' Bears held Dickinson State to 31.0 percent from the field and scored 10 points from 11 Blue Hawks' turnovers. DSU matched Rocky at 5 of 28 from three.
 
Latrelle Franklin gave Rocky a lift off the bench with 13 points, four assists and three steals. Satchel McDonald had nine assists, five rebounds and three steals.
 
Dickinson State got 16 points from and 10 rebounds Marcus White and 13 points from Ryan Clark.
 
This was Rocky's only game of the Green & Gold Classic due to travel issues for San Diego Christian College because of the heavy snowstorm in Billings. The Battlin' Bears will now look ahead to Frontier Conference play as they get set to host No. 11 Lewis-Clark State on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the Fortin Center.