MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — Will Cherry scored 21 points, and top-seeded Montana rolled into the Big Sky Conference tournament final with a 70-56 victory over Northern Colorado on Friday night.
Kareem Jamar added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies (24-6), who will face No. 2 seed Weber State, which beat North Dakota earlier Friday, in Saturday’s final. Montana beat Weber State 85-66 in last year’s final to earn the Big Sky’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Derrick Barden and Connor Osborne had 18 points apiece for the fifth-seeded Bears (13-18), and Osborne pulled down 12 rebounds. UNC shot 37 percent from the floor and committed 12 turnovers, which Montana turned into 17 points.
The Grizzlies never trailed and opened the game on a 15-2 run. Another scoring run late in the first half gave Montana a 34-25 halftime lead. The Bears threatened in the second half but couldn’t pull even.
