A jump shot is nothing special. It’s something the Clan have practiced their entire lives; it’s the product of continuous repetition. Methodically, and in their own style, each creates space to rise up and follow-through. At this point in their basketball careers, they are simply expected to shoot the ball without fear and without hesitation.
In a tumultuous seasons marred by injuries and losses that have pushed the undermanned Clan out of playoff contention, the team is also still expected to play without fear and without hesitation. With an 8–16 overall record, compared to Montana State University – Billings’s 14–10 record, the Clan had nothing to lose and all the pride to gain in Thursday night’s match against the Yellowjackets.
With their last meeting against MSU still on their minds, a game in December in which the Billings fought back from a 19-point deficit at halftime to eventually beat the Clan by three, the second to last match of the Clan’s season was also a chance for the Clan to exact revenge against their opposition.
Thursday’s game, however, proved to be a night of shooting woes and defensive errors for the Clan.
The ‘Jackets got hot early, breaking out for a couple of fast-break layups, as well as two consecutive threes, causing SFU to call a timeout within the first four minutes of the game. Before things could get out of hand, the Clan applied an aggressive full-court press to shut down MSU’s transition offense. With the Clan’s ability to refocus defensively, and getting much-needed hustle and drives to the basket from forward Jordan Sergent, MSU could never completely pull away early on. And with a swooping reverse layup around two defenders, Justin Brown finally gave the Clan their first lead, a 38–37 edge with less than two minutes to go in the first half. Despite these efforts, a buzzer beating tap-in basket by MSU’s leading scorer, Antoine Proctor, gave the Billings the momentum going into the half.
With his blinding crossover and fearless attack at the basket, the second-half saw Justin Brown trying to keep the Clan in the game almost singlehandedly. With another one of his body-contorting reverse finger-rolls around MSU’s agile big men, Brown tied the game at 49–49 early in the second. But with 15 minutes left in the second half, it seemed as though MSUB simply lifted their offense to another level. The Yellowjackets were able to capitalize on four straight turnovers by the Clan, giving them a couple of fast-break layups and pull-up jumpers to extend their lead. To add to the Clan’s woes, MSUB continued pulling down offensive rebounds, kicking the ball back out for two consecutive three point field goals, and a 63–51 lead for the Billings with 11 minutes left in the second-half.
Never losing their composure, the Clan were able to battle back, even coming within five points with nine minutes to go. Although Brown and Lewis continued to be aggressive, MSUB’s hot outside shooting, pushing their lead to 20 with two minutes left to play, proved too much for the Clan to handle. As the case has been all season, a strong first half went to waste and the Clan suffered another loss.
“We played one half of basketball today,” said sophomore guard John Bantock on his team’s inconsistency throughout the game. “They just outrebounded us in the second half, [we] didn’t shoot the ball very well, [and] didn’t really play any defense.”
“There’s no excuses, it was just a bad game, really,” Bantock said when asked about his team’s mentality going into the final game of the season. “[We just] have to come with a whole new different attitude to the next game.”
But a whole new attitude may not be what the Clan need. They could use some manpower for one, but as the season wraps up, as cliché as it may sound, it’s the heart and drive of the team that’s got them the few positives they’ve had. For this tirelessly working seven-man roster that has faced adversity all year long, it’s a tough loss to suffer. And although the season is over, next year will bring a fresh start that will be an opportunity to demonstrate a skill they practiced for their entire lives — the ability to rise back up and follow-through.
