BILLINGS, Mont. – Rocky Mountain College defeated crosstown rival MSU Billings 79-70 Saturday night at First Interstate Arena at MetraPark. The game counted as an exhibition for both teams.

MSU Billings led through the first 17 minutes of play before Rocky tied the game at 31-31. The Battlin' Bears proceeded to end the half on a 9-2 run powered by a pair of three pointers from Brandon The Boy and Kalvin Bowen.

The Yellowjackets never managed to reclaim the lead with the Battlin' Bears leading by as much as 20 nearly midway through the second period.

In the battle for boards, Rocky finished the night with a 47-39 advantage. Both teams had 13 turnovers.

The Battlin' Bears shot 43.9 percent from the floor and landed 12-of-32 from deep. MSU Billings shot a 38.2 field goal percentage while 22.9 percent on three pointers.

Four Battlin' Bears scored in the double digits. Sam Vining had a team-high 16 points with four assists. Brandon The Boy scored 15 points with eight rebounds while Clayton Ladine had 10 points, five rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Grant Wallace led the team in rebounds with nine while also knocking down 14 points.

The Yellowjackets' Brendan Howard had a game-high 24 points with seven rebounds. Teammate Tyler Green scored 12 points.

The Battlin' Bears will next play University of Providence in their first Frontier Conference game of the year on December 5.