MISSOULA, Mont. -- The Montana Grizzlies kept their unbeaten Big Sky season alive on Thursday night, as they topped the Southern Utah men's basketball team 71-47.

The loss moves the T-Birds to 8-11 overall, and 2-6 in Big Sky Conference play.

The first half was relatively low scoring, as the Grizz led 30-21 at the break. The Thunderbirds were able to keep it close, leading for a significant amount of time and never letting Montana go up by more than nine.

The second half got away from the T-Birds, as Montana built their lead to as many as 28, and pulled away with a victory.    

"We had 17 turnovers, and gave them 28 points off turnovers, so no matter how well you play you're never going to win that game," SUU head coach Todd Simon said. "So we've got to be better in that area, and we weren't able to complete passes and run our offense because of the turnovers and being careless with the ball."

Jamal Aytes was the offensive leader for the Thunderbirds, finishing with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field. Aytes also led the team in rebounds with seven in 27 minutes of play.

"He's continuing to get defensive rebounds, is such a weapon offensively, and keeps getting better and better," Simon said about the transfer from BYU.

Brandon Better was the team's second leading scorer with nine.

Michael Oguine led the Grizzlies with 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Ahmaad Rorie also had a strong offensive showing, scoring 21 points for Montana.

Next up for the Thunderbirds will be a rematch with the Montana State Bobcats on Saturday. That contest is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. MT.

Follow the Thunderbirds all season @SUUBasketball on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Basketball page on Facebook.

Read all about the Thunderbirds on www.suutbirds.com.

Single game tickets for the 2017-18 SUU men's basketball campaign can be purchased at www.tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.