MSU Falls Short Against Wyoming
12/13/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Freshman Mikel Watson buried a 23-foot three-pointer with the one minute remaining, and Wyoming buried Montana State 63-55 in Casper Saturday.
“That play broke the game open,” Durham said of Watson’s three-pointer.
Watson’s three-pointer came with two seconds remaining on the shot clock, and Wyoming clinging to a three-point lead. “It came down to Watson hitting a big shot,” Durham said of the game’s key play. “That was the backbreaker.”
Montana State’s multiple defenses put the Bobcats in position to steal a win in front of 5,119 Wyoming fans. “We played man and we played zone,” he said. “I thought we did a great job mixing our defenses. We knew we had to help in the post and keep their perimeter players off-balance.”
The other factor that worked in MSU’s favor was Calvin Ento’s dominant play against player much taller. Ento scored a season-high 19 points, grabbed seven boards, and blocked a shot. Jason Erickson had a dozen points and three steals, playing 40 minutes for the fourth time this season.
“Calvin stepped up tonight,” he said. “We got a little more done inside than we thought we might. I’m proud of how the guys played tonight. We’ll walk out of here with our heads up.”
Wyoming threatened to blow the game open midway through the second half. The Cowboys scored on seven of eight possessions, turning a 38-35 deficit into a 52-48 lead with 10 minutes left. A pair of Nick Dissly threes pulled the Bobcats close, but MSU possessed four times down by one and couldn’t recapture the lead.
The Bobcats and Cowboys battled on even terms throughout the first half, largely on the strength of the inside play of Calvin Ento and an inspired, creative game plan that covered MSU’s lack of size. The Bobcats led most of the way, falling behind momentarily on a Jay Straight three-pointer with 4:44 to play. Danny Faaborg answered with a triple of an inbounds play on with 3:20 to play, though, and when Calvin Ento and Joe Ries traded baskets in the last minute-and-a-half the ‘Cats ended the half with a 30-29 lead.
Ento was 7-for-9 shooting in the first half, scoring 14 points and getting three boards. The Bobcats used a dizzying array of defenses -- man, zone, traps -- to keep Wyoming off balance, and consistently fielded a lineup that gave up several inches across the board.
“That play broke the game open,” Durham said of Watson’s three-pointer.
Watson’s three-pointer came with two seconds remaining on the shot clock, and Wyoming clinging to a three-point lead. “It came down to Watson hitting a big shot,” Durham said of the game’s key play. “That was the backbreaker.”
Montana State’s multiple defenses put the Bobcats in position to steal a win in front of 5,119 Wyoming fans. “We played man and we played zone,” he said. “I thought we did a great job mixing our defenses. We knew we had to help in the post and keep their perimeter players off-balance.”
The other factor that worked in MSU’s favor was Calvin Ento’s dominant play against player much taller. Ento scored a season-high 19 points, grabbed seven boards, and blocked a shot. Jason Erickson had a dozen points and three steals, playing 40 minutes for the fourth time this season.
“Calvin stepped up tonight,” he said. “We got a little more done inside than we thought we might. I’m proud of how the guys played tonight. We’ll walk out of here with our heads up.”
Wyoming threatened to blow the game open midway through the second half. The Cowboys scored on seven of eight possessions, turning a 38-35 deficit into a 52-48 lead with 10 minutes left. A pair of Nick Dissly threes pulled the Bobcats close, but MSU possessed four times down by one and couldn’t recapture the lead.
The Bobcats and Cowboys battled on even terms throughout the first half, largely on the strength of the inside play of Calvin Ento and an inspired, creative game plan that covered MSU’s lack of size. The Bobcats led most of the way, falling behind momentarily on a Jay Straight three-pointer with 4:44 to play. Danny Faaborg answered with a triple of an inbounds play on with 3:20 to play, though, and when Calvin Ento and Joe Ries traded baskets in the last minute-and-a-half the ‘Cats ended the half with a 30-29 lead.
Ento was 7-for-9 shooting in the first half, scoring 14 points and getting three boards. The Bobcats used a dizzying array of defenses -- man, zone, traps -- to keep Wyoming off balance, and consistently fielded a lineup that gave up several inches across the board.
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