Montana State-Northern NORTHERN 14-7, 3-5

Rocky Mountain ROCKY 10-10, 2-6

Montana State-Northern NORTHERN

14-7, 3-5

Final

Jan. 21, 2023

Rocky Mountain ROCKY

10-10, 2-6

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	OT 1	OT 2	OT 3	F
Montana State-Northern NORTHERN	27	32	7	8	12	86
Rocky Mountain ROCKY	30	29	7	8	10	84

Summary
Box Score

Brandon Stinson

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 1/21/2023 8:25:00 PM | Brandon Stinson | Sports Information & Media Coordinator

Rocky Men’s Basketball Drops Heartbreaker 86-84 to MSU-Northern in Triple Overtime

New Zealand duo Stephens and Robinson finish with 20-point double doubles, but Rocky falls at the buzzer in a third overtime.

BILLINGS, Mont.- The Battlin' Bears played their second overtime game this season against MSU-Northern, this time coming up short 86-84 in a third overtime.

A back and forth affair throughout regulation, as the Battlin' Bears took a 30-27 lead into halftime behind an offensive explosion by Beau Santistevan, who scored 17 points in the first half alone.

Turnovers hurt the Battlin' Bears in the second half, as six turnovers by the Battlin' Bears resulted in easy transition baskets for the Lights as they held a 55-47 lead with 6:56 remaining in the game. Maxim Stephens would not go down quietly however, scoring eight points in the final seven minutes to give Rocky a 59-57 lead after knocking a pair of free throws down with 1:05 remaining. The Lights tied things up with a layup by CJ Nelson with 10 seconds left in regulation. A tipped pass and a turnover gave the Lights an opportunity to get a shot off to win, but Nick Hart blocked the three point attempt and both teams stayed settled at 59-59 going into the first overtime.

Rocky would get on the board first in overtime as Maxim Stephens would get a floater to drop. Northern would quickly turn things around however with a pair of made free throws from Jesse Keltner, followed by a three pointer by Anthony Braggs Jr. to give the Lights a 64-61 lead with 2:35 remaining. Northern would hold on to a three point lead in the final 10 seconds of overtime, when the inbounds pass was stolen by Nick Hart. The ball was quickly swung and found the hands of Jesse Owens who knocked down a three pointer to tie the ball game at 66-66 to force a second overtime.

The second overtime would stay close throughout, as a jumper by Maxim Stephens with 1:16 remaining in the period would give Rocky a tight 74-73 lead. Stephens would commit his fifth foul on the following possession, but two missed free throws retained Rocky's lead into the final possession. Northern's Jesse Keltner was a force on both ends of the floor all evening, as he drew a foul with two seconds remaining. Keltner would miss his first free throw, but sink the second to send the game into a third overtime period.

Kael Robinson came ready in the third overtime, hitting a three pointer on the first possession as the Battlin' Bears got on the board first. Both teams began trading baskets, as Cade Tyson hit a three pointer in response to a Keltner layup, only to have Northern's Immanuel Anderson match with a jumper on the following possession to give the Lights' an 81-80 lead with 1:13 remaining. Following a missed jumper, Beau Santistevan jumped through the crowd to grab his fifth offensive rebound of the game and put it back up to give Rocky the one point advantage. After a defensive stop, Jesse Owens was sent to the line, making both free throws to put the Battlin' Bears up 84-81.

From then on, it was Northern's Zackry Martinez's game to win, as he drew a foul the next time down the floor, hitting one of his two free throws to bring the game within two. After a Rocky turnover, the Lights' went back to Martinez, who hit a mid range jumper to tie things back up at 84-84 with only four seconds remaining. Martinez then stole the Rocky inbounds pass and heaved up a last second jumper that hit the back of the net to give the Lights' an 86-84 victory.

"It was like a heavyweight fight on First Interstate Court and nobody was going to go down." Coach Bill Dreikosen said. "Proud of our fight tonight, we left everything out on the court. That was a very tough, hard fought game that I believe is going to make this team better in the end."

The Battlin' Bears were led by 23 points and 11 rebounds from Maxim Stephens, 21 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists for Kael Robinson, and 21 points, nine rebounds, and three steals for Beau Santistevan. Rocky shot 46.4 % (32-69) from the field and 35% (7-20) from three point range.

The Lights were led by 15 points and five rebounds from Jesse Keltner and 14 points, two blocks, and two steals from Immanuel Anderson. Northern shot 43.4% (36-83) from the field and 21.1% (4-19) from three point range. This is the fourth overtime game the Lights have played in conference play this season and the first they came out victorious in.

The Battlin' Bears (10-10, 2-6 conf.) heads to Helena next Thursday, as Rocky looks to avenge an ugly loss to the Fighting Saints earlier this season.

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