BU falls just short to UMW in nail-biter, 73-72
February 14, 2026

BU falls just short to UMW in nail-biter, 73-72

DILLON, Mont. -- Ahamad Bynum's season-high 31 points were not enough for the Bellevue University men's basketball team as the Bruins fell 73-72 at the University of Montana Western on Saturday evening at Straugh Gymnasium.

With the victory, UMW improves to 18-8 on the year and 13-7 in the Frontier Conference. The Bruins fall to 20-6 overall and 15-5 in league play.

How It Happened:

Quincy Taylor opened the game with a fadeaway jumper for Montana Western but Bellevue scored the next seven points to take an early lead. The back-and-forth first half saw UMW respond with five-straight before the teams traded blows for the next four minutes.

A pair of free throws from Jaden Phillips put the Bruins in front 16-14 but the Bulldogs employed a 14-0 run in 4:00 of game time, in which they drained four three-pointers, including two from reserve Mark Huber, to seize a 28-16 lead.

Bellevue locked in defensively, allowing just two field goals the rest of the half, out-scoring Montana Western 17-8 with Ahamad Bynum knocking down a trey to pull within three at the break.

The Bruins were strong defensively out of the intermission, holding UMW to just eight points over the first eight minutes as they grabbed a 48-44 lead on a layup from RJ Smith.

Kyle Gruhler, who scored 19 of his 25 in the second half including seven of his nine free throws, put Western in front at the 8:23 mark with a jumped but BU out-scored the hosts 13-6 over the next four minutes to take a 66-61 lead.

Gruhler knocked down four-straight free throws on the next two possessions to make it a 66-65 BU lead with 3:21 to go.

After a pair of free throws from Bynum, David Young's jumper with 2:51 remaining again cut the lead to one and after a stop Gruhler hit a step back three to put UMW in front.

Bynum answered with a floater at the other end that was matched by Young to make it 72-70 before Smith tied the game with a pair of free throws at the 1:13 mark.

After missing the front end, Jacob Ankeny knocked down the second of two free throws to give the Bulldogs a 73-72 lead 55 seconds remaining.

Young travelled following a missed three by Haliburton, to turn the ball back over to the Bruins with 18 seconds to play. The Bruins called a timeout with 12 seconds left and after inbounding a second time, they got a clean look in the corner for Haliburton but his three-point attempt came up just short.

Top performers:

Bellevue University

Ahamad Bynum – 31 points (12-25 FG), 5-7 FT, 2 rebounds
Jaden Phillips – 15 points (3-8 FG), 7-7 FT, 8 rebounds
RJ Smith – 10 points (4-7 FG), 8 rebounds (6 offensive)
Jermaine Haliburton – 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals
Liam Thompson – 2 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists

University of Montana Western

Kyle Gruhler – 23 points (6-10 FG), 9-9 FT, 3 rebounds
David Young – 15 points (5-8 FG), 3-6 3-FG, 5 rebounds
Kolter Merritt – 9 points (4-8 FG)

Inside the Numbers:

  • Montana Western knocked down an incredible 11-21 (52%) three-point field goal, with seven different players connecting from downtown.
  • Bellevue shot 42% (24-57) from the floor while UMW shot 47% (24-51).
  • BU won both the turnover battle, 11-10, and rebounding battle, 37-29, but the three-point shooting was too much to overcome.
  • Bynum's 31 points were the most by a Bruin since Paulo Araujo went for 37 against Valley City back on Jan. 7 2023.
  • The game featured _ ties and _ lead changes, most coming in the second half.

Up Next:

Bellevue closes out the regular season at home next weekend with a pair of games from the BU Fieldhouse. The Bruins welcome Bismarck State College on Friday, Feb. 20 for a 7 p.m. tip before entertaining Dickinson State University for Senior Night at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21.