BUTTE -- The Montana Tech men's basketball team's quest for a fifth-straight Frontier Conference tournament title could not have started on a better foot. 

The Orediggers raced out to a double-digit lead and never looked back, racing past rival Montana Western, 93-65, in the tournament quarterfinal at the Butte Civic Center. 

Brayden Koch led Montana Tech (22-7) with a game-high 29 points, while Asher Williams dumped in 18 off the bench. 

Tech scored the first 11 points of the game. Koch knocked down his first two 3-point attempts of the ballgame, and Karson Peffer followed with five straight points to force a Bulldogs timeout. 

UMW (20-9) cut the deficit to eight, but another 11-2 run gave the Orediggers some breathing room. The game never again got within single digits. 

The Orediggers shot 6-for-13 from 3-point land in the first half and took a commanding 49-26 lead into the locker room. Koch had 16 points before the break. 

Montana Tech's hot shooting continued in the second. The Orediggers finished the game 34-for-57 from the field and 50 percent (12-for-24) from 3. Their 12 3s tied a season-best. 

Hayden Diekhans scored eight points to go with a team-high nine rebounds and four assists for the Diggers. Connor Michaud also scored eight. 

Emanuel Steward scored 19 points to lead the Bulldogs. 

Montana Tech, the No. 5 seed in the tournament, will face off with top-seeded Rocky Mountain in Sunday's 5 p.m. semifinal at the Butte Civic Center. 

Visit Montana Tech athletics' home online, GoDiggers.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news and coverage of the Orediggers. Give Montana Tech athletics a like on Facebook, and follow the Orediggers on X and Instagram at @DiggerAthletics.

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