BISMARCK, N.D. – Jace Anderson scored the final 10 of his career-best 30 points on free throws in overtime, as the junior led the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team to a gritty 98-92 victory over the University of Mary on Monday evening at McDowell Activity Center.
 
Anderson scored a dozen points total in the five minute reprise after the teams ended regulation knotted at 79-79. Despite surrendering a 21-point lead late in the second half and finishing the game with just six players, MSUB took charge in overtime and sealed a hard-earned victory.
 
"To go win with seven guys on the road not only on Saturday but tonight against a very good 3-0 team in overtime was a great team- and program-builder," said MSUB head coach Jamie Stevens. "Obviously, Jace, Marc, and Chris were huge. They are really playing free at the offensive end, and we got contributions from all seven guys tonight."
 

Freshman Christian Evans turned in a 29-point, 10-rebound double-double, and junior Marc Matthews made 10 of 17 shots from the field to finish with 24 points, five rebounds and three assists. The victory was the second in-a-row for MSUB, which improved to 2-2 on the young season.
 
The Marauders fell to 3-1 with the loss, as 18-point efforts from Rickey Suggs and Bryan Jefferson were not enough in the loss.
 
The 'Jackets carried their hot shooting from the perimeter against Black Hills State University on Saturday over to Monday's contest, as MSUB sank 8 of 12 shots from 3-point range in the opening 10 minutes to build an 18-point advantage.
 
Anderson nailed three of the team's shots from downtown for nine points early, and Evans added a pair of threes in the opening 10 minutes as well. Overall Anderson and Evans combined for 10 of MSUB's 15 makes from beyond the arc, as the 'Jackets shot at 42.9 percent in 35 attempts from long range.
 
Another three by Evans with 1:36 remaining in the first gave MSUB a sizeable 16-point advantage, but the Marauders embarked on an 11-2 run to close the half. The 'Jackets led at the break 46-39.
 
As quickly as UM had worked back into the game at the end of the first, the 'Jackets pulled away to start the second. Back-to-back threes by Evans and a layup by Emmanuel Johnson capped off a 16-2 run, as the Yellowjackets established their largest lead of the game with a 62-41 edge.
 
UM shifted momentum into its favor over the next 10 minutes however, cutting the deficit down to single digits at 74-65 with seven minutes to play. Two straight layups from Suggs made it a single possession game, as the 'Jackets called timeout leading 74-71 with 4:53 left on the clock.
 
The 'Jackets made just 3 of 12 shots and had three turnovers in the final nine minutes of regulation, as the Marauders evened the score at 79-79 inside of a minute to play. With three seconds left on the shot clock and five on the game clock, Jordan Perry heaved a desperation three from the corner off an inbounds pass but missed long as the game moved to overtime.
 
A turnover and a pair of missed shots by the Marauders to begin the overtime period opened the door for MSUB, and the 'Jackets capitalized. Evans scored seven straight points as the Marauders hit a cold spell, and an 88-81 lead for MSUB forced UM to foul Anderson the rest of the way to stop the clock.
 
"This team can really shoot the ball and moving forward that is what we are going to let them do," Stevens said. "Preston Beverly took a huge charge for us tonight, and once he gets his shot rolling we will get another shooter to go with what we have."
 
The 'Jackets were out-rebounded on the game 55-38, and UM turned 21 offensive rebounds into 27 second-chance points. MSUB shot 34-for-71 (47.9 percent) from the floor and 15-for-19 (78.9 percent) from the free-throw line. Conversely, UM shot 33-for-85 (38.8 percent) from the floor and 18-for-22 (81.8 percent) from the foul line.
 
THE BUZZ: MSUB competed with seven active players on its roster…Anderson was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB improved to 18-10 alltime against the Marauders with the win…Matthews (44), Evans (41) and Anderson (40) each topped 40 minutes played in the game…Johnson finished with eight points and four rebounds…Cade Alcorn grabbed seven boards.
 
NEXT UP: The Yellowjackets host three NCAA Division II schools in a tournament over Thanksgiving weekend, with the University of Alaska, Dominican University (Calif.), and Dixie State University heading to Billings. MSUB will challenge Dominican University on Friday and Dixie State on Saturday, with 7 p.m. tipoffs scheduled for each game.