Men’s Basketball: MSU-Northern tops Great Falls in OT

HAVRE – The University of Great Falls men’s basketball team lost its final regular-season game 62-55 in overtime to rival MSU-Northern Saturday at the Armory Gymnasium.

MSUN (7-7 Frontier Conference, 18-12 overall) came into the game needing to win to reach the Frontier Conference playoffs. The Lights did so in thrilling fashion to earn the No. 5 seed and will play fourth-seeded Carroll next Wednesday in the conference tournament.

UGF (6-8, 17-11) lost its sixth straight and fell from a potential home playoff game to the sixth seed and will play at Rocky Mountain College on Wednesday.

Argonauts senior point guard TJ Harris scored 18 points to pace UGF. He was the only Argo in double figures as Marcus and Matthew Hurn each added nine.

Corbin Pearson had 18 points and eight rebounds, while Warren Edmonson added 17 points and six boards for the Lights, who completed the season sweep of UGF.

Nicholas Blount’s 3-pointer with 1:10 to go in the extra session pushed the MSUN lead to 57-50, and the Argos got no closer than six the rest of the way as the Lights put the game away at the free throw line.

The Argos led late in the seesaw battle as Harris’ 3-pointer gave UGF a 46-43 advantage with 2:15 to go.

Pearson answered with a three-point play a minute later. Neither team scored in the final 1:02, and the game headed to overtime.

The Argos led by as many as seven in the first half before Harris banked in a 35-foot 3-pointer at the buzzer to give UGF a 26-22 halftime lead.

UGF split with RMC (8-6, 19-9). The Argos beat the Battlin’ Bears 85-69 in Billings on Jan. 15. RMC returned the favor 89-74 on Valentine’s Day at the McLaughlin Center.