Montana State University
5-7,0-0Big Sky
UC Riverside
8-4,2-0Big West
Walker’s 31 Not Enough in Tight Loss to UC Riverside
12/18/2024 10:34:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Brandon Walker scores career-high 31, Max Agbonkpolo adds 20 as second half lead evaporates in road defeat on Wednesday
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Despite a career-high 31 points from Brandon Walker, Montana State men's basketball saw a second half lead slip away in an 83-80 loss to UC Riverside at SRC Arena on Wednesday night.
Montana State (5-7, 0-0 Big Sky) led by 12 at the halftime break after shooting 61.1% from the floor and knocking down seven triples in the opening 20 minutes.
However, UC Riverside (8-4, 2-0 Big West) had their own 60% shooting half in the second frame, flipping the game and halting Montana State's offensive rhythm.
The Highlanders out-scored the Bobcats 42-27 in the second half, erasing what had been a promising start for an MSU squad looking for a bounce-back performance after a Sunday defeat at USC.
"Obviously for us this game came down to the defensive end of the floor in the second half," head coach Matt Logie said. "We couldn't get enough stops. We played about as clean a game as you can imagine with 18 assists and three turnovers on offense. We'll take a look at the film and see how we can improve, but you have to give some credit to UCR too. Barrington Hargress is a first team all-league guy for a reason and I thought he had a really good second half. I thought the difference in the game really came down to the free throw line. They get 18 out of 20 to go down, and we get five attempts. That's kind of how they kept themselves in it in the first half and then got on a run in the second half. It's disappointing but I was really proud of our effort and response to USC."
Walker's career night marked the first 30-point game for a Bobcat big man since Jubrile Belo had 32 against Sacramento State in 2021, and the first 30-point game for a Cat since Robert Ford III scored 30 last season against Montana.
The junior from Oak Cliff, Texas, finished with 31 points while shooting a remarkable 14 of 20 from the floor (70.0%), adding five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Walker made a career-high three 3-pointers on five attempts, making the most of what the Highlander defense gave him.
"I thought he did a really good job of taking advantage of their ball screen coverages," Logie said. "He played with good pace on offense and finished well. No turnovers. He had a great offensive game."
Montana State's offense hummed, collecting 18 assists on the night to only three turnovers, but the defense had more trouble. UC Riverside started the second half making 15 of their first 22 shots from the field, taking a 69-67 lead at the 8:33 mark and never relinquishing it back.
UC Riverside shot 18 of 20 from the free throw line, while Montana State was only granted five attempts at charity stripe, converting on two.
Max Agbonkpolo finished with 20 points and six rebounds, scoring 17 in the first half alone on 7 of 10 shooting to highlight the Bobcats' torrential start.
Jabe Mullins added eight points and seven assists, while Tyler Patterson knocked down threes on consecutive possessions in the first half to finish with six points.
Patrick McMahon, Jed Miller, and Bryce Zephir all ended the night with four points.
Montana State recorded zero turnovers in the first half and knocked down 22 shots on the way to a 53-41 lead at the break, but found a more restrictive UC Riverside defense out of the locker room in the second half.
"I've been telling these guys all through the non-conference that we've got to see the forest through the trees," Logie said. "We put this schedule together so that we could grow, so that we would face adversity, so that we would figure out what we needed to do to get better. Obviously you want to win as many games as you can in that timeframe and I think we're at four games that are one-possession games. You stick to your guns, you stick to your principles, you stick to your core values, you have the right attitude and those things will balance out in the end."
UP NEXT
Montana State wraps up the non-conference slate with a trip to face TCU on Sunday afternoon in Fort Worth, Texas.
Tip is set for 12 p.m. MT/1 p.m. CT. The game will be streamed on ESPN+, with live radio play-by-play airing on the Bobcat Sports Network.
The Horned Frogs out of the Big 12 were a No. 8 seed in last year's NCAA Tournament and are 6-4 to start the year.
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