Oscar da Silva helped host Stanford break open a close game with six of his game-high 21 points in a 25-2, second-half burst Wednesday night, propelling the Cardinal to a season-opening, 73-62 win over Montana.

Opening against a team that made the NCAA Tournament each of the past two seasons, the Cardinal trailed 36-35 with 17:07 remaining in the game before a layup by Bryce Wills 19 seconds later gave Stanford the lead for good.

Tyrell Terry had seven points and Spencer Jones a pair of 3-pointers in the run-away, which produced a 60-38 lead with 9:48 to go.

The Grizzlies of the Big Sky Conference played the Cardinal tough in the first half, taking as much as a 25-19 lead on a 3-pointer by Josh Vazquez with 5:19 left in the period.

However, Jones hit a 3-pointer to ignite an 11-3 run that allowed the Cardinal to take a 30-28 lead into the break.

Derrick Carter-Hollinger's three-point play in the third minute of the second half gave Montana one final lead at 36-35 before the Cardinal pulled away.

Terry finished with 13 points and Wills 11 for the Cardinal, who went 15-16 last season.

Wills also had four assists to share the team lead with Daejon Davis, who also had five steals in the game.

The Cardinal forced 17 Montana turnovers and gave away the ball just 10 times.

Behind da Silva's 7-for-10 success, Stanford outshot Montana 50.0 percent to 44.2 percent.

Sayeed Pridgett had 17 points to go with a game-high 10 rebounds and a game-high six assists for Montana, which had beaten Stanford in two of their previous five meetings.

Pridgett also found time with three steals and two blocks, but he committed six turnovers.

Carter-Hollinger chipped in with 15 points and Vazquez 11 for the Grizzlies, who won 26 games each of the past two seasons.

--Field Level Media