
Montana Grizzlies at Wisconsin Badgers
· Men's Basketball Championship - East Region - 1st RoundWisconsin back in March Madness win column, 85-66 over Montana

Back on defense, he took a charge from one Montana player, then altered another’s shot. By the time Gilmore’s flurry was over Thursday, the game pretty much was, too. The Badgers pulled away for their first March Madness win in three years, 85-66 over the Grizzlies.
“He's a major key to our team,” said John Blackwell, who finished with 19 points and was one of five Badgers in double digits. “He's a spark plug off the bench, a guy who's always going to give us energy whether he gets 15 points or zero points.”
Gilmore finished with eight points, and Wisconsin set aside the bad vibes from its first-round loss last year to James Madison. Next, coach Greg Gard’s team will try to make the Sweet 16 for the first time in eight years with a game against BYU, which defeated VCU 80-71.
Gilmore's burst came after the 14th-seeded Grizzlies cut their deficit to 51-47 with a poke-away steal, then an easy layup by Money Williams, Gilmore came back with a quick 3 that he punctuated by turning to the growingly rowdy Montana crowd and sticking up three fingers, with his index finger over his mouth.
He drew the charge on Montana’s next possession, then altered Te'Jon Sawyer's shot on the next, part of an 8-0 run that gave Wisconsin its biggest lead of the game to that point — one that would expand to 21 points.
“It was huge, and that's what good players do in those moments,” Montana coach Travis DeCuire said.
Sawyer and Kai Johnson led the Grizzlies (25-10) with 15 points each.
“It’s huge," Tonje said of the scoring coming from every area. “Especially down the line in March when you’ve got tired legs or whatever, you can really rely on a deep roster full of talented guys.”
Williams, the Grizzlies’ leading scorer this season, was blanketed by Blackwell most of the game and finished with eight points on 2-for-8 shooting.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin shot 55% from the field.
Adam Shoff and Jeremiah Dargan each had relatively open 3-point looks in the last minute, but neither hit the rim and the Badgers covered.
How can I watch Montana vs. Wisconsin?
Recent Plays
2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 66 - 85 |
2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 66 - 85 |
2nd 0:10 | Wisconsin Defensive Rebound. | 66 - 85 |
2nd 0:12 | Jeremiah Dargan missed Three Point Jumper. | 66 - 85 |
2nd 0:23 | Zack Davidson Steal. | 66 - 85 |
Statistics
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25-63 | FG | 31-56 |
39.7 | Field Goal % | 55.4 |
7-24 | 3PT | 7-23 |
29.2 | Three Point % | 30.4 |
9-12 | FT | 16-20 |
75.0 | Free Throw % | 80.0 |
29 | Rebounds | 40 |
9 | Offensive Rebounds | 8 |
20 | Defensive Rebounds | 32 |
13 | Assists | 14 |
6 | Steals | 5 |
1 | Blocks | 6 |
8 | Turnovers | 11 |
0 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
8 | Total Turnovers | 11 |
0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
9 | Points Off Turnovers | 9 |
5 | Fast Break Points | 4 |
34 | Points in Paint | 38 |
17 | Fouls | 13 |
1 | Largest Lead | 21 |
Game Information
Location: Denver, CO
Capacity:
2024-25 Big Sky Conference Standings
TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
---|---|---|---|
Montana | 15-3 | - | 25-10 |
Northern Colorado | 15-3 | - | 25-10 |
Portland State | 11-7 | 4 | 19-13 |
Idaho State | 10-8 | 5 | 15-15 |
Montana State | 9-9 | 6 | 15-18 |
Northern Arizona | 8-10 | 7 | 18-16 |
Idaho | 8-10 | 7 | 14-19 |
Eastern Washington | 6-12 | 9 | 10-22 |
Weber State | 5-13 | 10 | 12-22 |
Sacramento State | 3-15 | 12 | 7-25 |
2024-25 Big Ten Conference Standings
TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
---|---|---|---|
Michigan State | 17-3 | - | 30-7 |
Maryland | 14-6 | 3 | 27-9 |
Michigan | 14-6 | 3 | 27-10 |
Wisconsin | 13-7 | 4 | 27-10 |
UCLA | 13-7 | 4 | 23-11 |
Purdue | 13-7 | 4 | 24-12 |
Oregon | 12-8 | 5 | 25-10 |
Illinois | 12-8 | 5 | 22-13 |
Indiana | 10-10 | 7 | 19-13 |
Ohio State | 9-11 | 8 | 17-15 |
Rutgers | 8-12 | 9 | 15-17 |
Nebraska | 7-13 | 10 | 19-14 |
Northwestern | 7-13 | 10 | 17-16 |
Iowa | 7-13 | 10 | 17-16 |
USC | 7-13 | 10 | 17-17 |
Minnesota | 7-13 | 10 | 15-17 |
Penn State | 6-14 | 11 | 16-15 |
Washington | 4-16 | 13 | 13-18 |