RENO - University of Nevada men's basketball forward Joao Santos may have been the third option on the last play of the game but as it turned out, he was the best option.
Down 71-68, Santo drilled a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and force overtime. Then in overtime, the Wolf Pack made four more 3-pointers as they went on to beat Montana 86-85 on Saturday night at the Lawlor Events Center.
Santo admitted that his clutch shot was designed for either Terrance Green or Donny Guerinoni. Most likely the latter since Guerinoni converted made seven 3-pointers in the game. All three players, however, were just glad to win because it was a game they probably didn't deserve to.
"We didn't play well enough to win but when you can pull out the game like we did, that's a good sign," Guerinoni said. "They outhustled us, we were fortunate to win."
Guerinoni, who finished with a team-high 21 points, is right. The Grizzlies (2-1) led nearly the entire game and at times by double digits, including by 13 points on two occasions.
But a pair of Santos free throws with 6:16 remaining gave Nevada its first lead at 58-56. Montana then took a 63-61 lead after Jared Buckmaster made three straight free throws after a silly foul behind the arc by Santos behind the arc. The Grizzlies led for the final three minutes until Santo's clutch 3-pointer in the final seconds.
"I had a chance to help the team," said Santos, who finished with 10 points. "I was lucky to make that shot but it allowed us to go into overtime with confidence."
In overtime, the Wolf Pack drained three consecutive 3-pointers but Montana stayed close because of Buckmaster, who finished with a game-high 24 points. Buckmaster scored seven of his teams 15 points in overtime but it wasn't enough. Down 86-83 with two seconds remaining, Montana's Ryan Slider had a chance to tie the game. After making his first free throw, his second shot bounced off the rim and Nevada yanked down the rebound to pick up its third win of the season. The Grizzlies never led in overtime.
"To come out with a win, that's a positive," Wolf Pack coach Trent Johnson. "I don't really want to dwell on the negatives because a lot of our inabilities was because of Montana. They executed really well."
After turning the ball over 23 times in a 79-62 win over Montana State earlier this week, Nevada committed 18 turnovers against the Grizzlies. Many of them were unforced as Montana didn't pressure the Nevada guards that much. Johnson said that is one thing his team must get better at.
"I'm not very happy with our assist-to-turnover ratio," said Johnson. "At some point down the road here, if we turn the ball over as much as we are, it's going to be tough to win games against the better teams."
Nevada's off to its best start since the 1977-1978 season, when the Wolf Pack started 4-0. Nevada will have a chance to match that streak on Wednesday, when it plays Arkansas State at the Lawlor Events Center at 7:05 p.m.
