Northern Colorado Bears men’s basketball team fell to Montana State 73-68 in a Big Sky Conference game at Bank of Colorado Arena on Monday night. Despite trailing by as many as 15 points in the second half, Northern Colorado narrowed the deficit to three with 31 seconds remaining but was unable to complete the comeback.
The Bears started strong, leading 14-5 early in the first half. Montana State responded with a run powered by perimeter shooting and led 36-27 at halftime. The Bobcats made six of their fifteen three-point attempts in the opening period and extended their lead late in the half.
In the second half, Northern Colorado increased its efforts inside, outscoring Montana State 41-37 and generating extra opportunities through offensive rebounds. After falling behind by 15 points with just over nine minutes left, UNC steadily reduced the gap. In the final minute, Ring Nyeri collected two offensive rebounds to keep hope alive for Northern Colorado, but they could not convert a tying shot before Montana State secured the win at the free-throw line.
Brock Wisne led Northern Colorado with 18 points on nine-of-fourteen shooting and contributed five assists. Vincent Delano added 13 points and made three of five from beyond the arc. Zach Bloch scored twelve points with four three-pointers, while Quinn Denker recorded seven assists. Nyeri had a career-high fourteen rebounds, including six on offense, helping UNC score thirty-eight points in the paint and eighteen second-chance points.
Montana State’s Davian Brown scored sixteen points and made four of six from three-point range. The Bobcats finished eleven-of-twenty-six from deep and converted sixteen of twenty-one free throws.
Northern Colorado will play next against Northern Arizona in Flagstaff on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MST. The game will be available on ESPN+ and Pirate Radio.
Fans can follow updates about Northern Colorado Bears men’s basketball at uncbears.com or through social media channels including X (@UNC_BearsMBB), Instagram (@UNC_BearsMBB), and Facebook (/UNCBearsMBB).
