Big Sky Tourney: Hornets, T-Birds, Bengals Advance To Quarterfinals

At Boise, Idaho (CenturyLink Arena):

The Big Men's Conference's men's basketball tournament opened on Wednesday with three first-round games.

Game #1:

Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa (who grabbed ten rebounds) and Osi Nwachukwu each scored 16 points as the ninth-seeded Sacramento State Hornets (16-14) knocked off the eighth-seeded Weber State Wildcats (12-20) 62-54 in the opening game of the tournament.

Jerrick Harding scored 31 points to pace the Wildcats in their season finale.

Game #2:

Dre Marin scored 19 points to guide the seventh-seeded Southern Utah Thunderbirds (17-15) to a 75-69 victory over the Idaho Vandals (#10 seed; 8-24), despite a 35-point, eight-rebound performance from the Vandals' Trevor Allen.

Game #3:

Austin Smellie scored 16 points while Cheir Maker added 15 (to go with his 12 rebounds) as the eleventh-seeded Idaho State Bengals (8-22), who finished tied for last place in conference play during the regular season, shocked the sixth-seeded Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (16-14) 64-62.