BUTTE -- The No. 20-ranked Montana Tech men's basketball team used a balanced attack to dispatch Bismarck State, 98-70, Saturday night in Valley Bank Arena. 

The Orediggers (18-6, 12-6 Frontier Conference) got 16 points each out of Karson Peffer and Asher Williams, while Eli Quinn added a career-high 13 points off the bench. Hayden Diekhans finished with 10 points and seven rebounds for Montana Tech. 

Tech found itself down 16-8 in the game's early going, but then the offense woke up. A three-point play by Peffer kicked off a 16-2 Oredigger run, and the home team took it from there. 

Peffer finished the first half with 12 of his 16 points, and freshman Easton Sant scored six to go with four rebounds and two assists in solid minutes off the bench. Tech led 46-28 at the break. 

The second half was Eli Quinn's show. The redshirt freshman scored all 13 of his points in the final 20 minutes, adding five rebounds and a block to his tally as the Orediggers cruised to victory. 

Houston Davis led the way for the Mystics (1-23, 1-17) with 15 points and 11 boards. 

Montana Tech's 98 points were the most scored by an Oredigger team since a 108-60 win over King's (Alberta) on December 28, 2024. 

The Orediggers will remain at home next weekend to play host to Bellevue and Dakota State on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

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