Anthony Johnson scored 18 points to help Montana hold off Sacramento State 57-56 on Friday night.
Freshman Will Cherry had nine points and four steals and made the game-winning shot for the Grizzlies (13-6, 4-3 Big Sky).
Justin Eller led the Hornets (7-11, 1-4) with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Montana held a six-point margin until Sacramento State came back to lead 52-51 on a 3-pointer by Antonio Flaggs with 4:39 to go.
The Grizzlies regained the advantage when Cherry stole an inbound pass and drove to the basket for a layup to make it 57-56 with 18 seconds remaining.
The Hornets had a chance to win, but Mike Marcial's shot missed with 3 seconds left.
Trailing by eight, Montana staged a 13-0 run to move ahead 27-22 with 4:01 remaining in the first half.
Sacramento State regrouped and led 30-29 at intermission.
