BILLINGS -- The No. 20-ranked Montana Tech men's basketball team got 22 points from Asher Williams and 15 from Hayden Diekhans but couldn't get past No. 23 Rocky Mountain, 82-71, Saturday afternoon on the road.

Diekhans put in the first basket of the game for the Orediggers, but the Battlin' Bears responded with an 8-0 run and never trailed again. 

Rocky (19-3, 14-2 Frontier Conference) led 46-30 at halftime. 

Led by 13 second-half points from Williams, Tech (16-6, 10-6) began to close the gap with a handful of runs. Connor Michaud's layup just inside the 10-minute mark shaved the lead to nine, but the Battlin' Bears responded with two straights baskets. 

Tech put the double-digit lead in jeopardy twice more, but both times RMC had a response. 

Karson Peffer added 11 points and four rebounds for the Orediggers. 

RMC's Omari Nesbit led all scorers with 24 points. 

Montana Tech will return home for next weekend's Frontier Conference ballgames, starting Friday at 7 p.m. against Dickinson State. Game day will be presented by Valley Bank. 

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