GREAT FALLS, Mont. – Doug McDaniel hit the go-ahead shot with 1:59 remaining and combined with Trea Thomas to go 9-of-10 at the foul line in the final minutes to help the Lewis-Clark State College men's basketball team defeat the University of Great Falls 82-78 in Frontier Conference play on Friday night.
 
LCSC trailed 73-69 with 3:08 remaining, but held the Argonauts scoreless from the field until the final 10 seconds to seize control of the contest.
 
The win lifts the Warriors to 14-6 overall and 4-4 in conference play, while Great Falls, which has lost four straight, falls to 10-8 and 2-5.
 
"That was a great team win on the road," LCSC coach Brandon Rinta said. "It was back and forth all game with both teams taking turns making runs."
 
A pair of free throws gave the Argonauts their 73-69 lead, but LCSC answered with an 8-0 run to take the lead for good. Isaiah Omamogho scored in the paint and then Thomas hit a pair of free throws to tie the contest at 73 with 2:11 left.
 
After the Warriors' Zavon Jackson came up with a steal, McDaniel scored on a close range shot to put the Warriors ahead. Thomas then hit two more free throws with 1:38 left to make it 77-73 for LCSC.
 
Great Falls stopped the run with a free throw from Isaac Howard with 1:16 left, but Thomas hit a free throw with 23 seconds left and added two more with 13 seconds left. Following a bucket by Sergio Berkley for UGF with nine seconds left, McDaneil sealed the deal with a pair of free throws to make it 82-76 with eight seconds remaining. Great Falls scored at the buzzer for the final.
 
"We had different guys step up and make plays at different times," Rinta said. "Isaiah got it going early. Trea and David hit some big shots late. Zavon was solid all game, and Doug came up with some big rebounds."
 
The contest was close throughout. Great Falls led most of the first half and had its biggest lead at 23-16 with 12:30 left before halftime, but LCSC used an 11-0 run at the end of the first half and start of the second for a 45-38 advantage.
 
Great Falls responded immediately with a 12-0 run for a 50-45 advantage. The two teams then went back and forth with the lead never larger than five for either team until the final minute of play.
 
The Warriors finished with five players in double figures scoring. Jackson led the way with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field. He also had six rebounds. Thomas finished with 15 points, while McDaniel and Omamogho had 14 each. McDaniel, who had an off-shooting night, also finished with nine rebounds. Anthony Sullen was the fifth Warrior in double figures with 10 points.
 
For the game, LCSC was 28-of-62 from the field for 45.2 percent and 9-of-30 from the 3-point line for 30 percent. Great Falls was 30-of-55 for 54.5 percent and 5-of-12 at the 3-point line for 41.7 percent. LCSC's defense did turn over Great Falls 18 times.
 
The Warriors' welcomed back guard Derrick White, who had been sidelined for a month with an injury. He finished with four points and three rebounds.
 
"It was good to get Derrick back," Rinta said. "This team has run into some adversity in the last couple weeks with injuries. We are down to nine guys. Everyone is going to have to step it up like they did tonight."
 
The latest Warrior to miss a game was freshman post Connor Desaulniers, the only Warrior taller than 6-6. He missed Friday's game as did Jeremy Franklin, who is nursing an ankle injury.
 
The Warriors return to action on Saturday night in Havre, Mont., where they will face Montana State-Northern at 7 p.m., PST.