Dec. 20, 2000

Box Score

MISSOULA, Mont. - Triana Allen's rebound basket at the buzzer capped a miraculous comeback as Gonzaga University came from 12 points down in the final 1:24 to defeat the University of Montana 74-73 Wednesday in a non-conference basketball game at Dahlberg Arena.

The Bulldogs (4-6), who trailed by as many as 16 points in the second half, opened their two-game swing through the state of Montana with a nearly unbelievable comeback. Gonzaga will be at Montana State University Friday prior to breaking for Christmas, returning to action Dec. 30 at Sacramento State University.

Behind 72-60 with 1:24 to play, the Bulldogs got a 3-point play from Jessica Malone, who finished with a game-high 26 points, with 1:01 remaining. A steal by Allen and Erin Bergman's 3-pointer with 41 ticks left cut the deficit to 72-66.

Allen fouled Brooklyn Lorenzen on the ensuing possession, Lorenzen missed the free throw and Nathalie Chevallay grabbed the rebound for the Bulldogs. A Bergman layin pulled Gonzaga to within 4 points at 72-68 with :29 to go. Bergman was fouled as the Lady Griz inbounded the ball, but Bergman missed the free throw and the rebound was pulled down by Montana's Lauren Cooper.

But another Allen steal, her fourth of the night, led to another Cooper foul and Allen sank the first free throw, missed the second and the Bulldogs still trailed 72-69 with :26 remaining.

Allen's foul sent Cooper to the line, she missed both free throws and Malone grabbed the rebound, came down c9ourt and drilled a 3-pointer to pull the Bulldogs even 72-72 with :16 to play. But Malone, apparently thinking the Bulldogs still trailed and needed to foul in an attempt to get the ball back, fouled Linda Cummings with :12 on the clock. Cummings missed the first free throw and made the second to give the Lady Griz a 73-72 lead.

Allen missed a jumper with :07 to go, Celeste Quitiquit tied up the rebound and the ball went to Gonzaga on the alternating possession. Quitiquit took an errant pass with :04 to go and put up a shot that bounced off the iron and right to Allen who sank the 12-footer with :00.4 showing on the clock.

Gonzaga, which shot just 36.7 percent in the first half on 11-of-30 from the field, hit 16-of-33 second-half shots for 48.5 percent and also connected on 4-of-8 from 3-point range. The Lady Griz, meanwhile, shot just 34.4 percent in the second half on 11-of-32, and went a dismal 4-for-14 from 3-point range and 6-of-15 from the free throw line in the final 20 minutes. The Lady Griz finished 21-for-59 from the field for 35.6 percent, 10-of-25 from 3-point range and just 21-of-33 from the line for 63.6 percent.

Gonzaga grabbed a quick 3-0 lead on a 3-pointer by Malone, who scored 26 points for the second time in the last three games, with just :17 gone in the contest. It was the first of just two times the Bulldogs would lead in the first half, taking a 13-12 lead with 11:42 to go on a Bernice Stime jumper. Montana held as much as a 15-point lead in the first half, built on a 22-6 run following the 13-12 Gonzaga lead as the Lady Griz grabbed a 34-19 advantage with 3:36 to go in the opening half. The Bulldogs ended the first half on a 9-4 run in the final 1:13 to trail 41-33 at the break.

First-year head coach Kelly Graves said it was the biggest comeback in his career. "Two year's ago at Saint Mary's we trailed at Hawaii 28-8 and came back to win in overtime to really turn our season around. But to come from 12 points down in 1:24 and win is the most amazing comeback I've been associated with," Graves said. "We battled, and I haven't seen us compete like that this year. We were on the floor for every loose ball and got them late. Triana had some big steals, hit some big shots and had just one turnover. We showed a lot of character. Now they know they can compete, they built a quality program and won a big game against a hostile crowd on the road. Montana doesn't lose much in that building, and they are a good team. We kept our composure."

In retrospect, Graves said Malone's seemingly untimely foul turned out to be a key in the game. "She thought we were still behind, but I told her that play probably won us the game. If she doesn't foul Montana is able to run the clock down and go for the final shot to win it. Sometimes those things work out in the end," Graves said.

Allen finished with 15 points, while Bergman contributed 14.

The game also saw the first action of the season for Ellen Shaw, who joined the basketball team just 10 days ago after playing volleyball for the Bulldogs.

"She played seven minutes and did okay. She didn't play a lot, but those seven minutes gave somebody a rest. And having Celeste back in the lineup helps us, too," Graves said.

Quitiquit was playing just her second game of the season after returning to the lineup Sunday at Washington State University. She suffered her second knee injury of her young career last March and was cleared to return to competition last Friday. She played 22 minutes and had 2 points, 6 rebounds and just 1 turnover.