Senior guard Xavier Bishop scored 20 points to lead Montana State University to a 72-65 win over St. Thomas men’s basketball in the team’s first Division I home game Saturday at Schoenecker Arena. The loss snapped a 12-game home win streak for the Tommies.
The Tommie men (4-6) sprung out to an 18-point lead against the Bobcats (7-4) early in the game. However, a defensive adjustment and 8 unanswered points helped the Bobcats storm back to a 39-36 lead going into halftime.
The Bobcats kept pushing until the end of the game, closing out with a 7-point lead. Senior guard Anders Nelson said the Bobcats were a glimpse of what is to come in the Summit League this season.
St. Thomas women’s basketball also suffered a loss within 10 points in the Saturday doubleheader, falling 67-57 to Idaho State University for their seventh loss of the season.
The St. Thomas women (2-7) struggled to make stops and defend the pick and roll against a mechanical and well-executed Idaho State (4-6) offense. The Bengals also outrebounded the Tommies 37-24, and on the other end of the floor, used their height to outscore St. Thomas by 16 points in the paint.
“We knew Idaho State,” coach Ruth Sinn said. “I mean, they’re averaging twelve offensive rebounds a game. We haven’t developed habits that we need to develop in order to be consistent with that.”
Both basketball teams play Northland College at home this week, with the men playing at 7 p.m. Tuesday and the women set for 7 p.m. Wednesday.
St. Thomas men’s and women’s hockey both lost on the road Friday, with the men falling 6-1 to Michigan Tech University and the women 4-3 to Lindenwood University.
The men’s team (1-19, 1-13 CCHA) played a closer game the following night, matching the Huskies’ (9-7, 6-5 CCHA) three regulation goals but losing on a shot 1:17 into overtime. The women’s team (4-13-1, 2-11-1 WCHA) fell 4-1 in their rematch against the Lions (4-13, 3-3 CHA).
Both hockey squads will return in January after a long break ahead for finals and the holidays.
The St. Thomas men’s and women’s track and field home opener set for Friday was canceled due to winter weather concerns. Both teams will now begin their first DI season on Jan. 8 at the University of Minnesota.
Mia Laube can be reached at mia.laube@stthomas.edu.