Montana
USC men’s basketball continues to hit stride with blowout of Montana State
LOS ANGELES — Everything he says in front of a microphone, Eric Musselman smirked Sunday, is calculated. And he speaks, firstly, not to the general public. He speaks, firstly, to his own program.
Two weeks ago, USC reeling amid a three-game losing streak, head coach Musselman told reporters “I don’t know how many Big Ten games we’re gonna win” after a loss to Oregon. It was not the work of loose lips, fueled by emotion. It was planned. It was a coach who was fully aware his players had eyes and ears and social media, and would no doubt see a clip of their head coach questioning his program’s very ability nine games into their season.
And in the weeks to come, as guard Desmond Claude affirmed Sunday night, Musselman’s players have wanted to hit the hardwood and show him.
“I would say,” wing Saint Thomas said Sunday, with a smirk of his own, “I definitely seen what he said.”
There is life in this USC program yet, and life in the Galen Center, life created by the media-manipulation mind games of a 60-year-old HC who was forged amid the drama of the NBA.
A week after the Trojans followed up that Oregon loss by bludgeoning Washington on the road, they returned home to blitz Montana State on Sunday night in an end-to-end 89-63 win.
“I mean, we were playing bad basketball a couple games ago, and that’s the real,” Thomas said. “And him speaking up like that, I think, kind of got us out of our funk.”
Claude continued a three-game stretch of immaculate play, finishing with 19 points on 6-of-8 from the floor and 7-of-8 on free throws. Thomas added 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks.
USC never once trailed, and the ballgame was all but over by the 10-minute mark. Thomas drained a three to put the Trojans up 27-5 early on an overwhelmed Big Sky opponent.
Suddenly, in a conference known for plodding big men and gritty offense, free-flowing USC (7-4, 1-1 Big Ten) looks like the kind of program that could give a host of Big Ten schools fits.
“We’re starting to turn it around,” Claude said postgame. “And — yeah, we just wanted to prove everybody wrong.”
The team’s “only problem” at the moment, as Thomas said postgame, was guarding the ball and playing team defense. Maybe not only. But regardless, it had bit USC for weeks, and with his ideas already exhausted Musselman turned to his roots.
He and staff, after the Oregon game, reached out to a host of NBA teams and coaches for ideas on defensive drills, Musselman said after Sunday’s game. Since then, they’ve drilled two-on-two pick-and-roll actions for 14 days straight.
“We just needed to put them in some different situations,” Musselman said postgame. “And I thought it really helped us.”
For minutes, to open Sunday’s game, Montana State had difficulty even getting a shot off before red zeroes blared. MSU started just 2-of-13 from the floor, and USC’s defensive rotations and help in the paint look massively improved. And on the other end, a team that had played a sort of discombobulated your-turn, my-turn offense swung the rock as if they’d been buddies since childhood.
One possession with about nine minutes remaining in the first half was pure symphony. First came a slew of DHOs to get Thomas driving off a pick-and-roll. Then came a baseline cut by Matt Knowling and a find by Thomas. Then came a touch-pass to the corner from Knowling to Clark Slajchert. Then came an immediate drive-and-dump by Slajchert to big Rashaun Agee, a slew of split-second instinctive reads culminating in a thunderous jam from Agee.
After USC took a 47-21 halftime lead, Claude kept his program afloat in the second half, repeatedly breaking down bigs off pick-and-roll actions and attacking downhill relentlessly to the tune of 15 points after the break.
“He’s become a really, really hard player to defend,” Musselman said postgame.
Two weeks ago, in front of that microphone at Oregon, Musselman could’ve taken a wildly different route. They’d lost in the final minutes to the then-12th-ranked team in the nation, after all. It was a sign of progress.
But the man was thinking steps ahead and dropped the words that have sparked a turnaround.
“The truth hurts sometimes,” Thomas said, on Sunday. “But hey, the truth got us to where we are now.”
Originally Published:
Although newly minted GOP candidates for the U.S. House and U.S. Senate have garnered heavyweight endorsements, the Montana Republican Party said Thursday it won’t throw its support behind any candidates for federal office in the primary.
“The Montana Republican Party (MTGOP) stands behind its deep bench of qualified candidates seeking to represent Montanans and supports a competitive primary process to let voters pick their preferred candidates,” the Montana GOP said in a news release Thursday.
Monday, U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke announced he was retiring due to health concerns once his term ends, and he immediately tapped talk-show host Aaron Flint as his preferred successor in Congress.
Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and Flathead County Republican Central Committee Chairperson Al Olszewski also filed for the U.S. House as Republicans, as did Ray Curtis of Bonner.
Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines withdrew, and in a statement the same night, announced an endorsement of former U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme, who had filed the same day.
In the Senate, Lee Calhoun and Charles Walking Child also filed to run in the Republican primary.
Endorsements for Flint and Alme cascaded. U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed both candidates, and U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy and Gov. Greg Gianforte threw their weight behind Flint and Alme.
Late on Wednesday, the Montana GOP did not immediately have comment on the news Daines, Montana’s senior U.S. senator, had resigned, but Thursday, the party thanked Zinke and Daines for their service.
A news release said the party would not endorse any candidates in the federal primary and would leave the job in the hands of voters.
“The party hopes every candidate will make their case to the public, contrasting their Republican policies and principles with those of Democrats — as well as phony ‘Independents,’” the news release said.
Former University of Montana President Seth Bodnar announced a run for the U.S. Senate as an independent this week.
A tension within the Republican party has emerged in recent years between hardline conservatives and more moderate members, and some legislative primaries illustrate the split.
This week, the state GOP said the number of primaries for state legislative seats shows a high interest from Montanans who want to serve the state and pass Republican policy, and the MTGOP “is glad to see so many Republicans being called to public service.”
In a brief call, MTGOP spokesperson Ethan Holmes said the party had not ruled out endorsements in legislative primaries.
In the news release, however, the MTGOP offered its view of the larger political debate.
“Montana voters know that beyond the primaries, there is a clear choice between Republican and Democratic governance; one path leads to lower taxes, less crime and stronger families, and the other leads to higher taxes, more crime, and social decay,” MTGOP Chairperson Art Wittich said in a statement.
The news release also said the state GOP is working “tirelessly to deliver a Bright Red Future” at both the state and federal level and looks forward to help candidates whom voters select win in November.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 4, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 4 drawing
07-14-42-47-56, Powerball: 06, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from March 4 drawing
33-38-39-47-51, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 4 drawing
01-07-08-27, Bonus: 12
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 4 drawing
05-10-26-53-59, Powerball: 06
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Montana Cash numbers from March 4 drawing
03-04-06-08-10
Check Montana Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 4 drawing
12-13-36-39-58, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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