Montana State’s men’s basketball team, the Bobcats, lost 77-65 to Kansas State in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday night. Although RaeQuan Battle scored 26 points, it was not enough to keep pace with Kansas State, who will now face Kentucky in the second round. Montana State finished the season with a 25-10 record, making their second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance. However, they also lost in the first round last year against No. 3 Texas Tech.
Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson led Kansas State with 17 points and 14 assists and 18 points and eight rebounds, respectively. Darius Brown II and Great Osobor both scored 12 points for Montana State. The team’s big man, Jubrile Belo, only scored five points, and the team struggled at the foul line, making only 9 of 17 free throws.
Kansas State led by as many as 16 points in the second half, and Montana State could only reduce the deficit to eight points with 2:47 left in the game, thanks to a 3-pointer from Brown. With this loss, the Bobcats’ NCAA tournament run has ended, and the Big Sky Conference is still seeking its first NCAA tournament victory since 2006 when 12th-seeded Montana beat No. 5 Nevada.
Montana State’s NCAA tournament run ends with a first-round loss to Kansas State
Montana State’s men’s basketball team, the Bobcats, faced Kansas State in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday night. Despite RaeQuan Battle’s 26 points, the 14th-seeded Bobcats could not keep up with the third-seeded Kansas State, resulting in a 77-65 loss at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C.
Markquis Nowell, with 17 points and 14 assists, and Keyontae Johnson, with 18 points and eight rebounds, led the Wildcats to their first NCAA tournament victory since 2018. The team’s record is now 24-9, and it will face No. 6 seed Kentucky in the second round on Sunday.
Montana State, which finished the season with a 25-10 record, was making its second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance. However, the Bobcats lost in the first round last year as well, against No. 3 Texas Tech in San Diego.
In Friday’s game against Kansas State, Darius Brown II and Great Osobor both scored 12 points. Brown provided nine assists, while Osobor grabbed seven rebounds. Jubrile Belo, the Bobcats’ big man, only scored five points and did not attempt a field goal until nearly five minutes into the second half. Additionally, the team struggled at the foul line, making only 9 of 17 free throws.
Kansas State led by as many as 16 points in the second half, and Montana State could only reduce the deficit to eight points with 2:47 left in the game, thanks to a 3-pointer from Brown. With this loss, the Bobcats’ NCAA tournament run has ended, and the Big Sky Conference is still seeking its first NCAA tournament victory since 2006 when 12th-seeded Montana beat No. 5 Nevada.
This story will be updated.
Don’t miss interesting posts on Famousbio
