MISSOULA, Mont. – Sacramento State jumped out to an early lead Thursday night in Montana, but the Lady Griz rebounded quickly and started to pull away before eventually handing the Hornets a 90-77 loss Thursday night in Missoula.

With the loss, Sacramento State falls to 0-10 overall this season and 0-7 in Big Sky competition. Montana improves to 6-4 overall while moving above .500 to 3-2 in league play. 

The Hornets scored the first five points of the game but saw their last lead of the night evaporate when Montana overtook them, 6-5, just a few minutes later. Despite the early hole, Montana managed to take a 16-12 lead into the first break.

The second half was closely contested, though Montana again won the quarter, outscoring the Hornets, 23-22. Despite losing both of the first two quarters, the Hornets trailed by just five at the half, 39-34. 

The third period was more of the same as Montana continued to add on to its lead, little by little. The Lady Griz outscored the Hornets by five in the third period, 25-20. Despite the deficit, Sacramento State remained within striking distance, trailing 64-54 as the game went to the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately for Sacramento State, they were unable to reverse the night's trend and mount a comeback in the game's final 10 minutes. The Lady Griz continued to get better as the game went on, scoring a game-high 26 points in the final quarter and sending the game final, 90-77.

Four Hornets scored in double-figures Thursday night, led by Tiana Johnson, a Montana-native returning to her home state. Johnson scored 14 points on 4-of-13 shooting and pulled in a team-leading eight rebounds.

Following close behind were junior guards Sarah Abney and Summer Menke, both with 13 points. Jazzy Carrasco also finished in double figures, scoring 12 points on an efficient 4-of-6 shooting (2-4 3PT).

As a team, Sacramento State 38.0% compared to Montana's 50.8%. The Lady Griz were also better from three, outshooting the Hornets, 35.0% to 24.2%

While the Lady Griz originally held a significant advantage at the free throw line, the two teams finished fairly evenly. The Hornets were 15-of-21 from the charity stripe while the Lady Griz went 19-for-25.

Sacramento State won the offensive rebounds battle, 12-10, but fell behind in overall rebounds, 45-36. The Hornets were also better in points off turnovers, 21-18, and in fastbreak points, 13-4, but Montana was better in the paint, 44-38.

Thursday night's game was the first of two for the Hornets on the road in Montana. The two teams will tip off again Saturday morning at 9 a.m. PT/10 a.m. MT. The game will again stream live on Pluto.TV.

For direct links and other information on all upcoming games, be sure to visit the Sacramento State women's basketball homepage online at HornetSports.com.