Lights go winless at Cactus Classic

Over the weekend, the Montana State University-Northern mens basketball team made a trip to the Cactus Classic in Chandler, Arizona. However, it was not a fruitful trip for the Lights as they went 0-3 in the tournament.

The Lights started the tournament this past Friday with a 100-94 loss to Ottawa University-Arizona in overtime. The Lights fell behind early as they trailed, 46-37, at halftime. But they rebounded in the second half to get back in the game. Thanks to a pair of free throws from Zackry Martinez, the Lights forced overtime.

But the Lights could not keep pace in the extra period as OUAZ pulled ahead for the victory. The Lights finished the game shooting 44.9 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free-throw line. Myles Dalton led MSU-Northern with 28 points as he went 10-for-20 from the field and 7-for-10 at the free-throw line. Xavier Bailey also played well with 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting from the field.

This past Saturday, the Lights fell again in a 92-67 loss to Arizona Christian University. The Firestorm jumped on the Lights early as they took a 52-22 lead into halftime. The Lights played much better in the second half, but it was not enough to overcome the deficit. As a team, the Lights shot 41 percent from the field and 76.9 percent from the free-throw line. Dalton, Bailey and Rogan Barnwell all scored 14 points for the Lights in the losing effort.

MSU-Northern finished the tournament on Monday with a 83-56 loss to Huntington University. Like their first couple games of the trip, they fell behind and trailed, 42-28, at the half. The Lights were unable to respond in the second half as they dropped their third straight.

In the loss, the Lights shot 33.9 percent from the field. Martinez led the Lights with 22 points as he went 8-for-15 from the field and 4-for-10 from the 3-point line. With the loss to Huntington, the Lights dropped to 7-5 on the season.

The MSU-N mens basketball team will next play Ambrose University at Armory Gymnasium Dec. 28 at

5 p.m.