GREAT FALLS, Mont. – A three-point final margin was hardly indicative of how Argo basketball controlled its game against the University of Calgary. UGF led by as much as 17 points, and held an 11-point lead with just over seven minutes left in an 88-85 win that was the team's first home game in over a month.
 
Isaac Howard wasted no time announcing the impact he intended to have on the game, hitting a 3-pointer 18 seconds into the game to give UGF the first points of the night. The Argos would go cold for the following four minutes, falling behind 10-9, but another three from Howard reclaimed a lead that would increase to 24-14 three minutes later.
 
Another Howard three and two buckets each for juniors Matthew Brooks-McGregor and Sergio Berkley led that run, and would continue to lead the way for the Argos for the rest of the game.
 
Despite their efforts, the Dinos answered back, chipping away at the lead for the next five minutes and eventually tying the score at 28 all. Right on cue, Howard was there to answer with what was already his fifth 3-point make of the game.
 
That score spurred another rally for UGF, and the Argos went into the locker room at half time up 48-41.
 
Howard and Brooks-McGregor were a two-man wrecking crew in the first half for UGF, combining for 32 of the team's 48 points and shooting a combined 8-12 from behind the line.
 
Those two were at it against to start the second half. Howard hit two more threes in the period's first four minutes and by the 12:52 mark, the Argo led by 17 points.
 
As Howard cooled off, the lead slipped a bit, but thanks to Berkley, fellow junior Jared Schultz and a second career three from junior Treyvon Bashir kept the margin at 11 with less than eight minutes remaining.
 
The rest of the game was largely a matter of UGF hitting just enough free throws to fend off a late Calgary charge. The final game-sealing effort came from two made free throws by senior John Makkar who played his first minutes of the season after sitting out for the fall semester.
 
Howard's hot shooting made him the team's leading scorer with 21 points off 7-11 shooting all of which were from distance. Brooks-McGregor was just behind him, finishing with 19 points, and 5 rebounds.
 
Schultz scored 13 and Berkley scored 12, but the Bashir may have been the best player on the floor for the Argos.
 
The junior forward set career highs in points, rebounds, and assists. His full-game assault on the boards led to a monstrous 16 rebounds, and his 8 points were a result for 2-3 shooting from 3-point range which were his first two career threes. He also added a team leading 4 assists and 1 steal to his impressive stat line.
 
The win was the second straight for the Argos and brings the team's season record to 9-4 (1-1) on the year. It also marks the end of non-conference play for UGF, with Frontier Conference play resuming on January 5 with a home game against MSU-Northern at 7:30 p.m.