(RMC release)
BILLINGS – Danny Betcher scored a season high 17 points to lead the Rocky Mountain College men’s basketball team to a 77-68 win over Montana Tech on Saturday night in the Fortin Education Center.
Rocky (16-10, 7-7 Frontier) had all five starters score in double figures in the win. They shot 50 percent from the field – the fourth straight game at 50 percent or higher – and the Battlin’ Bears converted on 21 of 23 attempts at the foul line.
Betcher scored his season-high points on 4 of 9 shooting and by making nine of his 10 shots at the foul line. The total is one shy of his career high set against Lewis-Clark State in 2016. He also led the team with 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.
The Battlin’ Bears bolstered their shooting by scoring 30 points in the paint and added 12 points from seven offensive rebounds. They held Montana Tech (11-14, 3-11) to 44.0 percent from the field and 7 of 23 from beyond the arc.
Craig Wilmore added 15 points and six rebounds to give him his first consecutive games in double figures scoring this season. Chad Kananen hit 4 of 6 from deep to finish with 14 points. Satchel McDonald scored 13 points and Jared Samuelson had 10 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
The Orediggers cut a 22-point Rocky lead with 17:33 to play down to 65-62 with 3:14 remaining by shooting 60.9 percent in the second half and scoring 18 points from 15 Rocky turnovers.
Chris O’Neill led Tech with 23 points after hitting 4 of 7 from beyond the arc.
Rocky’s win, coupled with a loss by MSU-Northern, has the Battlin’ Bears alone in fourth-place in the Frontier Conference standings with four games to play. They will open those final four games with a trip to Great Falls, Montana to face Providence on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
