BOISE, Idaho — Isaiah Brickner had 23 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season, and Brody Rowbury scored 12 points to help seventh-seeded Idaho beat No. 4 seed Montana 77-66 on Wednesday night to win the Big Sky Conference tournament and clinch a berth in the NCAA tournament for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Idaho (21-14), which played its fourth game in five days, has won five in a row and captured the Big Sky Conference tournament for the first time since 1990. The Vandals snapped a nine-game losing streak against Montana and lead the series 113-99.
Kolton Mitchell added 11 points and Trevon Blassingame scored 10 for Idaho.
Under third-year coach Alex Pribble, the Vandals have their most victories since they also won 21 games in 2015-16.
Money Williams and Te’Jon Sawyer led the Grizzlies (18-16) with 19 points apiece and Brooklyn Hicks scored 11.
Williams scored a tournament-record 91 points, breaking the mark of 83 set by Montana’s Anthony Johnson in 2010.
The Grizzlies beat No. 1 seed Portland State 75-72 and Idaho knocked off third-seeded Eastern Washington 81-68 in the semifinals.