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SACRAMENTO, CA- The University of Montana Grizzlies had three players score in double figures and tied the school record for the best start ever by a Griz team in Big Sky Conference play, as they defeated the host Sacramento State Hornets 67-58 Saturday evening in the Hornets Nest.

The Griz improved to 12-1 in league play, which ties them for the best Big Sky start ever with Montana's 1991-92 team which also started 12-1 in league play. That team was coached by Blaine Taylor and went on to tie the school (the 1949-50 team also went 27-4) record by going 27-4 overall. The 2011-12 Griz are the first team in school history to go 7-1 on the road in Big Sky play.

Montana is now 19-6 overall, and has won eight games in a row and won 14 of its last 15 games. The Hornets, who had won their previous four games in a row, go to 4-9 in league and 9-15 overall.

The win also keeps the Grizzlies tied for first place with Weber State. The Wildcats defeated visiting Eastern Washington 84-75 Saturday evening.

The Grizzlies out-scored the Hornets 42-28 in the second half. After trailing by five (30-25) at intermission they took the lead (33-32) for good on a lay-up by junior forward Mathias Ward with 16:16 left in the game.

The Griz were led in scoring by senior guard Will Cherry with 17 points, while senior forward Art Steward added 16, and senior center-forward Derek Selvig had 14. Those three starters scored 47 of UM's 67 points. Selvig also had a career-high 14 rebounds, giving him his second double-double of the season and the sixth in his career. Cherry scored all 17 of his points in the second half.

"I was really impressed with the way they played against us," said Griz head coach Wayne Tinkle in the postgame radio interview on KGVO Radio. "They really hit us in the mouth and our guys did not respond very well in that first half. But, we have faced adversity before this season and hung in there against an intense Sacramento State team.

"To go 7-1 on the road in league is just unbelievable ," Tinkle said. "It just says a lot about our guys. When you play well and play as a team, a lot of neat things can happen. We have our eyes on a bigger prize. We have not played an unbelievable, 40-minute game yet this season, and I think we can get even better."

Montana made 18-of-48 (39.1%) shots from the floor, 4-of-15 (26.7%) three-pointers, and made 27-of-35 (77.1%) free throws, thanks primarily to 27 Sac State fouls (UM had 17 fouls). The Griz out-rebounded the Hornets 41-34.

The Hornets made 19-of-58 shots for 32.8%, hit 9-of-27 (33.3%) treys, and were 11-of-17 (64.7%) from the line. Forward Joe Eberhard and guard Jackson Carbajal led the Hornets with 11 points each.

The Grizzlies jumped to a quick 5-0 lead to start the game, but the Hornets went on a 13-2 run to take a 13-7 lead with 16:30 left to go until the half. The largest Sac lead in the first half was 20-11. Montana cut the Sac lead to one (23-22) on a pair of free throws by Steward, but when Hornet senior guard Heath Hoffman hit a shot at the buzzer he gave Sac State a 30-25 halftime lead.

It was a foul-marred first half, as the Hornets were whistled for 13 and the Griz had 10, and there were eight offensive infractions called. UM starters Cherry, Kareem Jamar, and Ward had two first-half fouls each in the first half and saw limited action because of those infractions. Cherry was held scoreless in the first half for just the second time this season (Long Beach State).

"At halftime I told our guys to just play Grizzly basketball, and they really hung in there and played hard, and got a tough win here tonight," Tinkle said . "I am really proud of our guys for playing gutsy, and finding a way to win when we were not at our best."

Cherry's 17 points give him 1,082 for his career, moving him up to 18th all time at Montana, as he passes Scott Zanon (1,070 points, 1984-87) and Craig Zanon (1,071 points, 1978-81). Cherry also had 2 steals in the contest, giving him 203 in his career, ranking him eighth in league history.

Montana steps out of league action this week, hosting the University of Hawaii Rainbow Warriors of the WAC in a BracketBusters game Saturday, February 18, with tip-off at 7:05 p.m. in UM's Dahlberg Arena.

After that non-league match-up with Hawaii, the Grizzlies conclude their regular-season with three straight home conference games.