Going into Saturday’s game at Montana State, the Hornets had only made 30 3-pointers in their last three games.

Sac State ended up making 25 on Saturday, tying their own NCAA Division I record. That wouldn’t be enough, however, as Big Sky conference leaders Montana State took advantage of another bad third quarter to win the game 116-99.

Sac State junior guard Brianna Burgos set a new career-high for points with 34, and also tied a Sac State record with nine 3-pointers in the game. Sophomore guard Maranne Johnson added 20 points and a career-high six 3-pointers as well.

Sac State head coach Bunky Harkleroad, while not happy about the loss, was thankful for the effort of the two guards.

“I’m proud of Bri [Burgos] and Maranne for stepping up,” Harkleroad said.

The beginning of the game seemed to belong to Montana State (17-5, 10-1 in Big Sky), taking a 6-0 lead within the first minute. They would battle back and forth with Sac State throughout the first quarter before ultimately finishing with a 26-22 lead.

The second quarter, however, belonged to Sac State. Burgos and Johnson would make a combined seven 3-pointers in the quarter, and the Hornets scored 30 points in the quarter to take a 52-50 halftime lead.

Sac State would go on to score the first seven points of the third quarter before it all fell apart. Senior guard Adella Randle-El, who has been one of the most consistent players for the Hornets, had all five of her fouls in the third, causing her to be ejected from the game.

Harkleroad was surprised by the performance, but didn’t place the blame completely on Randle-El.

“In her defense, Adella made three poor decisions and a couple of calls that the refs didn’t give her a break,” Harkleroad said.

Montana State outscored Sac State 35-25 in the quarter, the fourth straight game that the Hornets allowed at least 25 points in the third. Montana State ended the quarter with an 85-77 lead.

In the fourth, Montana State started off with a 10-0 run and never looked back. At one point in the quarter, the Bobcats led by as much as 22 points.

Montana State had seven players score in double figures, led by Peyton Ferris’ 20 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Sac State had only three players score more than 10 points (Burgos, Johnson, and Ericka Magana, who had 12), and only made 6 of 23 two points attempts (26%).

Sac State (7-14, 4-6 in Big Sky) comes back home to the Nest this week, playing their first of two home games on Thursday against Weber State. The game starts at 7:05 p.m.